Mike Trout gives Angels fans one small reason to believe — for now at least

Man, shout out to Mike Trout. What a player. He's special, and every chance to watch him on the baseball diamond is a treat.

The Los Angeles Angels superstar is back in the mix this spring after missing the majority of last season with a meniscus injury. Trout, 33, has seen a historic career derailed by a litany of ailments in recent years; he has played more than 100 games in a season just once since 2020.

Trout appeared in 29 games and tallied 109 ABs for the Angels in 2024. In that short span, he rocketed 10 home runs, stole six bases, and put up an impressive .867 OPS. He's no longer the unrivaled best player in baseball — that title probably belongs to his former Angels teammate, Shohei Ohtani — but Trout can still outpace 99.9 percent of MLB when he's healthy.

So far, Trout looks like his old self in spring training. He gave Angels fans a nice reminder of his talent on Wednesday, taking Cincinnati Reds veteran Bryan Shaw deep to left field.

That ball just leaps off the barrel. There aren't many prettier swings in baseball. Hopefully — hopefully, said with several knocks on wood — this is the beginning of Trout's redemption arc and a healthy campaign for the 11-time All-Star.

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Mike Trout rockets spring training home run to give Angels fanbase glimmer of hope

The Angels won 63 games in their first season under manager Ron Washington. It's safe to say the only real source of hope in Anaheim is Trout. Baseball is a team sport, but if there's one individual who can drag L.A. to respectability, it's the three-time MVP and nine-time Silver Slugger. He just needs to stay on the field.

Trout is expected to move to right field this season in an effort to mitigate risk on defense. He's a sharp defender — and always has been as a centerfield catch-all for the Angels — but with age and injuries piling up, Los Angeles will try its best to keep Trout out of harm's way. Expect planned rest, built-in DH days, the whole shebang.

In a perfect world, Trout would probably DH full-time, but the Angels' Jorge Soler signing virtually guarantees that Trout will remain in the outfield for now. Los Angeles doesn't want to completely take away what makes Trout to special. His aggression is all areas of the game is part of what makes him a generational talent. In the end, though, Trout's value to the Angels is mitigated when he's constantly hurt. Something has to give.

A single spring training home run means very little in the grand scheme of things, but it's a strong reinforcement of what Trout brings to an otherwise muted Angels lineup. Still under contract through 2030 at $37.1 million annually, Los Angeles is hoping against hope that Trout can shake his injury bug. That sounds like extremely wishful thinking, but that's what sports are all about. Fans spend years dreaming of what's possible. If Trout can put together a full season, the Angels might actually be a factor in the AL West for once. Nobody deserves it more than Trout.