Mike Trout injury: 3 players the Angels should sell not named Shohei Ohtani

Mike Trout is heading for the IL, and that could force the Angels to consider making trades and pivoting toward a rebuild.

I’m really, really sorry Los Angeles Angels fans. You deserve better, and whether it’s the ineptitude of ownership, management, coaches, or players, Angels fans always seem to have to deal with the worst timeline possible.

On Tuesday, the Fourth of July of all days, FanSided.com’s Robert Murray reported that star outfielder Mike Trout is heading for the injured list.

It’s a miserable existence on Independence Day for the Angels, one that puts Trout back in August at some point if he recovers similarly to other players who have had this injury.

Los Angeles has actually been keeping itself in things this year. At 45-42, they are six games back in the AL West and three games back from the wild card.

There’s a massive predicament here for Los Angeles. Shohei Ohtani, possibly the best baseball player in the last 50-60 years, is a free agent this offseason. If they can convince Ohtani that he can win a title in LA, perhaps they can sign him to a long-term deal.

Or, another perspective acknowledges some hard truths. Trout is injury prone, on the decline, and has six years and is owed $222.7 million still. Can the Angels even afford the contract Ohtani deserves? And if they can, surely there’s no leftover cash to build around him.

Truthfully, the Angels should consider trading Ohtani to get something for him before he walks for nothing. But that’s a nuanced discussion that should get its own stage. Today, let’s look at players the Angels should consider unleashing in the trade market before the August 1 deadline not named Shohei Ohtani.

Prior to the Trout injury, this list may have included more players in the prospect pipeline. But now, the Angels need to keep that stacked in case they pivot toward a rebuild. From now until the trade deadline, they should be looking to offload these players and bring in even more youth.

Players Angels should consider selling: Matt Moore

Pitching is the one thing that virtually every competitive team, except for perhaps the Texas Rangers, needs this trade deadline. Matt Moore has been an outstanding relief pitcher with a 1.44 ERA, 0.8 WHIP and 3.73 FIP in 25 innings of pitching.

Moore is a free agent, so he could be sold as a rental to teams looking to shore up their bullpen as the postseason draws near.

Moore is a vet with 12 years of experience, including an All-Star year in 2013. He’s been converted over the years from a starting pitcher to a relief role and has done a remarkable job with the redefinition over the last two seasons.

If teams need someone to start a bullpen day in the playoffs, Moore would be an excellent first pitcher to kick a game off.