First pitch: Could Phillies create a superteam by getting Mike Trout home?

Let's be honest ... things are not going well right now for the Los Angeles Angels. A free-fall that started right after the team had made some big moves at the MLB trade deadline has turned into a roster purge and plenty of questions about the direction of the franchise and the future of two of its brightest stars, Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout.

While Ohtani's future may be a little more certain, with a contract scheduled to end at the conclusion of this season and an expected frenzy in free agency that could land the two-way superstar a record deal, Trout's future seems cloudy and clear at the same time.

He is in the middle of a 12-year, $426.5 million deal that runs through the 2030 season, seemingly locking him into whatever direction the Angels are heading in the near and far future. However, Trout has recently stated he will be having a meeting with team leadership about the direction of the team.

The results of that meeting could set an interesting course ahead for Trout and the Angels. He is, after all, a long-time face of the franchise and would continue to be the biggest draw for the team in the future (should Ohtani leave as is expected). But Trout is also one of the game's greatest players and has tasted the postseason just once (2014) in his 13-year MLB career ... and those three games against Kansas City certainly didn't last long.

If the Angels are not built for the postseason, could Trout look back east as the next chapter of his Hall of Fame-worthy career as a way to once again play meaningful baseball in October?

Could a trade bring Mike Trout to the Philadelphia Phillies?

Sure, it would be a long shot, but imagine if the Phillies could entice the Angels with a big enough trade package to bring Trout (a native of nearby New Jersey) and avid Philadelphia Eagles fan (as he reminded us back in June) back east? Phillies fans would salivate at the thought of a lineup that includes Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Trout in the heart of it, and the swap would alter the landscape of both the National and American Leagues.

Last year, our own Mark Powell put together a trade package for the Atlanta Braves that would bring Trout to Truist Park. That package included Spencer Strider and Vaughn Grissom as the headliners of a four-player return to Los Angeles. Powell even says in his trade article that the return feels "light," showing the magnitude of what it might take to bring Trout out of the shadows of Disneyland.

When MLB.com reranked the farm systems back in August, Philadelphia came in 23rd out of MLB's 30 teams, meaning there isn't much at the higher levels ready to make an impact. If Los Angeles would want multiple players who could make an immediate impact at the MLB level, Philadelphia might be forced to poach from its current roster to land Trout.

While the time might be right to ask about Trout's availability and the dream Phillies lineup with him in it certainly might be an enticing thought, reality might set in quickly for a number of reasons.