Josh Hamilton roundly booed in return to Angel Stadium

The saga of Josh Hamilton and the Los Angeles Angels has sort of faded into the background during this roller coaster baseball season, but it added another chapter with Hamilton's return to Angel Stadium on Friday night.

This night was highly anticipated when Hamilton was initially shipped back to the Texas Rangers on April 26 for all of the obvious reasons. Hamilton was a major free-agent signing by former general manager Jerry Dipoto, agreeing to a five-year, $125 million deal prior to the 2013 season, but had failed to live up to the hype during two disappointing seasons.

Hamilton's tumultuous time with the Angels then reached a breaking point when he admitted to a drug and alcohol relapse just prior to spring training. With owner Arte Moreno already disassociating himself from Hamilton and looking for a way out of the contract, the team settled on trading him back to Texas, which set the stage for his return on Friday.

The reaction for Hamilton wasn't mixed by any means. There was no forgiveness in the air or any sense of welcoming. But Hamilton wasn't exactly booed out of the stadium with overwhelming fervor, either.

Hamilton's first real appearance in the game actually came on defense, as he reeled in a first-inning fly ball.

Then came time for Hamilton's first plate appearance in the next inning.

Again, it was one-hundred percent disapproval in the stadium, but not overwhelming.  Once Hamilton stepped in and the at-bat started, the booing subsided.

That sounds about right. And we'd also add the cheers were much higher than a 7.3 after Hamilton went down swinging against Nick Tropeano.

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In his second at-bat, Hamilton completely silenced the ballpark all together with a ringing double to right field. He came around to score the Rangers first run, which tied the game in the fourth inning. They would go on to win the game 4-2, with Hamilton adding another single and run scored in the seventh. 

We're sure the token boos will remain throughout the weekend, much the same way they remained in Texas throughout his Angels tenure. We're also sure Hamilton will continue to shrug them off as he attempts to reestablish his value in MLB. 

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813