Top 5 Mike Trout comparisons in MLB history

Al Kaline

Three years ago, Detroit Tigers legend Al Kaline compared Mike Trout to New York Yankees great Mickey Mantle. Though it seemed to be a major stretch for a player that was only halfway through his rookie season at the time, the comparison is not looking too far off a few years later.

Trout has either won the MVP or been the runner-up every season in his MLB career, and has actually topped Mantle in several statistical categories through the early phases of their careers.

The two players have been compared to each other quite frequently, due to their early success and their common ground as power-hitting centerfielders. Trout, who grew up just two hours away from the stadium where Mantle became a legend, is honored to even be mentioned in the same breath as the Yankees Hall-of-Famer.

"“It’s an incredible honor just to be in the same sentence as him, just the way he carried himself and the way he played the game,” he told the NJ.com."

Trout still has his work cut out for him to match Mantle’s long list of accolades and accomplishments, which includes 20 All-Star appearances, seven World Series titles and three MVP Awards.

The manner in which the Los Angeles Angels star instills fear in opposing pitchers and gives his all on every play, however, certainly reminds baseball historians of the player that dominated baseball during the 1950s and 1960s.

Next: Willie Mays