Angels rushing Mike Trout back from injury would be a mistake
Mike Trout is the best player in baseball, but his team isn’t going to make the playoffs. That’s why the Angels need to be careful with Trout’s injury.
The temptation to play Mike Trout every day has to be almost overwhelming for manager Mike Scioscia. He can’t give in though. Scioscia and the Los Angeles Angels front office need to be exceedingly cautious with Trout’s current injury.
Today, the team announced that Trout has received a cortisone shot in an effort to alleviate soreness in his right wrist. The Angels claim his status is day-to-day at the moment. Predictably, the team has struggled without their superstar in the lineup. Los Angeles is 1-4 in the five games Trout has missed on the season.
If the Angels were a legitimate threat to quality for the postseason, it might make sense to push Trout’s recovery timeline. The fact that they currently trail Astros by 16 games in the AL West should free the club to be exceedingly cautious with the game’s brightest star. Trout shouldn’t get anywhere near the field again until his wrist feels completely healthy.
Today, the #Angels released the following medical update on centerfielder Mike Trout:
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) August 6, 2018
Mike Trout continues to experience soreness in his right wrist. He received a cortisone injection this morning and remains day to day.
Wrist injuries definitely aren’t anything to mess around with. Trout gets a significant amount of his power at the plate from his ability to turn his wrists to drive the ball to all fields. From a neutral fan’s perspective, robbing him of his power would be a tragedy for baseball fans all around the globe.
Trout also isn’t the sort of player who can go out onto the field and play a cautious game. Putting him in the field would really put his wrist at risk. Watching him track down balls in the outfield can be breathtaking, but Angels fans don’t want to undergo any suspense watching his wrist crash into the turf or an outfield wall in a relatively meaningless game.
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Angels fans might want to see Trout play every game down the stretch, but that’s not the right move for the club’s future. Giving him a brief stint on the disabled list might be the best thing or he and the franchise in the long run.