Heartbreaking Mike Trout injury update highlights why he's stuck with Angels

Mike Trout isn't going anywhere anytime soon, if ever.
Oakland Athletics v Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics v Los Angeles Angels / Gene Wang/GettyImages
facebooktwitterreddit

The Los Angeles Angels have been a dumpster fire for the most part of the last decade now, but the one saving grace that Halos fans had was being able to watch superstars play every day.

Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani never played much at the same time as they both had their struggles staying on the field, but Angels fans usually have had the pleasure of watching one of them, which helps a bit to deal with the constant losing. Unfortunately with Ohtani in a Dodgers uniform and Trout dealing with injuries of his own, Angels fans have been robbed of their chance of watching stars this season, and they'll have to wait even longer following Trout's latest injury update.

This doesn't come as a major surprise based on what Perry Minasian said the day of the trade deadline, but Trout is done for the year after suffering a meniscus tear while he was trying to come back from a meniscus tear.

Not only is this brutal for fans who want to watch one of the greatest players of this generation play the game he's so good at, but it's also unfortunate for fans who want Trout traded for the sake of him getting back to the postseason. Simply put, it's not going to happen anytime soon, if at all.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

Mike Trout trade talks can be put on the back burner after brutal injury update

Mike Trout trade talk originates from fans who want to see a player as good as Trout on the biggest stage. Despite all of his brilliance, Trout has just one postseason series under his belt, and that came in 2014. He is still searching for his first postseason win, let alone a postseason series win.

With the way things have gone in Anaheim since they last made it, there's little reason to have hope when it comes to them playing meaningful games in October anytime soon. Unfortunately, a Trout trade just doesn't make much sense for a variety of reasons, and this injury update is only one of them.

First, Trout has given no indication that he even wants a trade. He's made it abundantly clear that he wants to win in Anaheim. Sure, he might change his mind, but barring that, he's not going anywhere, and he has a no-trade clause even if the Angels wanted to trade him.

Second, the Angels have given no indication that they want to trade Trout. Arte Moreno and the Angels inexplicably think they're closer to competing than they are, and want Trout to lead them there. The fact that he's their franchise player and draws fans to their games is just another reason why the Angels wouldn't want to let him go.

Third, his contract is horrific. Trout is making $37 million annually through the 2030 campaign. When he's on the field he's more than worth the money, but with him done for the year, he will have played in just 319 of the possible 708 games he could have over the last five seasons. That's roughly 45 percent. It's not Anthony Rendon bad, but it's not good either. $37 million for several more years for an older player to play in less than half of the games is a really tough sell.

That's where we get to the injury history. Trout's injury history being as extensive as it is, especially lately, makes him less than desirable as a trade candidate. You'd think as he gets older, these injury woes will only be more extreme.

Even if Trout wanted to be traded and the Angels were open to dealing him, would the Angels realistically get enough value back to make it worth their while without eating an insane amount of money? It's getting harder to say yes.

To sum up, Trout doesn't want to be traded, the Angels don't want to trade him, and all of these injuries combined with his contract make him less than desirable when it comes to him being a trade candidate. It's unfortunate, but as the injuries continue to mount, the likelihood of MLB fans never seeing Trout in a postseason game again continues to increase.

feed