Will Mike Trout's injury woes hurt Angels star's Hall of Fame chances?

Mike Trout is tied for the major league lead with 10 home runs entering Friday's action, and his six stolen bases are already as many as he had in the last four seasons combined.

But in the "we just can't have nice things" category, news came earlier this week that Trout will undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. It is not expected to end his season, but Trout will miss two to three months and he is understandably frustrated (and emotional) about having to miss time again.

Trout played at least 134 games in all but one of his first eight full major league seasons (2012-2019). During the 60-game 2020 campaign, he played 53 games. Since then though, it's been a run of injuries for the future Hall of Famer.

In 2021, a strained right calf limited Trout to 36 games. In 2022, he missed some time with a rib injury but hit 40 home runs in 119 games. In 2023, a fractured hamate bone in his left hand led to him playing just 82 games.

If Trout is out until, let's say after the All-Star break, the most games he can now play this season is 95 (the Angels have 66 games after the All-Star break).

Much of the conversation about Trout has centered on how bad the Angels have been, and that he only has 15 career postseason plate appearances (all in 2014). But injuries are impacting his legacy in a different way.

Will Mike Trout's injury woes impact his Hall of Fame chances?

Unsurprisingly, Trout leads active players with 86.3 WAR (Wins Above Replacement). He's fifth all-time among centerfielders in WAR, behind some non-descript guys named Willie Mays, Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker and Mickey Mantle and ahead of Ken Griffey Jr. and Joe DiMaggio. Since 2020 though, Trout has posted just 13.9 WAR.

Trout's career slash-line (.299/.410/.581, 173 OPS+) compares closely to Mantle's (.298/.451/.557, 172 OPS+). But his chances of catching Mantle in WAR (110.2) are slim, and frankly fading as he nears his 33rd birthday (Aug. 7).

3,000 hits is still an accomplishment, but it's not the gateway to Hall of Fame immortality it once was. Trout currently has 1,648 hits. The sheer length of his contract (through 2030), assuming he plays it out, would seem to give him a chance. But as Matt Snyder of CBS Sports laid out, while giving Trout 52 hits over the rest of this season, Trout would have to average almost 217 hits per season from 2025-2030 to get to 3,000. He has never had more than 190 hits in a season, and he last topped 150 hits in 2016.

Sitting at 378 career home runs with his fast start, Trout was a good bet to reach 400 home runs this season. Using Mantle's 536 home runs as a target point, which the big 'if' of reaching 400 this year, Trout would have to average 22.67 home runs per season over the rest of his career (h/t to Snyder).

Five centerfielders have scored 1,500 runs and also driven in 1,500 (Cobb, Mays, Mantle, Griffey and Carlos Beltran). Trout is at 1,123 runs scored and 954 RBI. Those are each somewhat teammate-dependent, and Trout has not had more than 80 RBI since 2019.

On Trout's Hall of Fame resume is a Rookie of the Year, three league MVPs, 11 All-Star selections and nine Silver Sluggers. He is still sure to gain election to Cooperstown, but his track to being a first-ballot Hall of Famer has been derailed by injuries.