The Los Angeles Angels have not had a winning season since 2015, nor have they made the postseason since 2014. Three-time American League MVP Mike Trout has not tasted October baseball for most of his career, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen in 2026.
He has dealt with a lot of injuries over the past several years, and the question remains whether or not he can stay on the field for a full 162 games this year.
So far, he has looked quite good in spring training. Eno Sarris of The Athletic made a bold prediction, that Trout will return to his old self this season.
“Last year was his worst for sprint speed, as he dropped to the 62nd percentile,” Sarris wrote. Running well again, at a time when he’s going back to playing center field more, will likely be good news for his defensive numbers. The stat may not be predictive of stolen base success, and has an element of hustle in its nature, but it can at least tell us that he’s running faster, on average, this spring.
“That’s good news because he’s never really lost the bat speed or the quality of contact numbers. He was 93rd percentile in Barrels last year, 77th percentile in Bat Speed, 85th percentile in Hard Hit rate.”
Is Mike Trout back?
Trout tore his meniscus in 2024 and wasn’t quite the same in 2025. Though he still hit 26 home runs and posted a .797 OPS, he slashed .232/.359/.439 and missed several games due to other injuries.
But if he can stay healthy, he can still be one of the best players in Major League Baseball. In addition to his three MVPs, Trout is an 11-time All-Star and nine-time Silver Slugger.
Unfortunately, even if he returns to his old form, that won’t help the Angels get back into contention. Though they made several bargain moves this past offseason, they didn’t exactly do anything that jumped off the page, and they are still expected to be one of the worst teams in the American League.
But Trout returning to form could at least create some excitement for fans in Anaheim, who haven’t had much to cheer about in several years. Either way, Trout has had a Hall of Fame-worthy career, and getting back to that would be good for his Cooperstown resume.
Will Trout stay healthy?
As long as he can stay healthy, he can still be a very solid player. The production at the plate is less of a problem because he still possesses a lot of power from the right side of the plate.
He also has historically been a very good defensive player, so if he’s healthy, that could potentially improve and allow him to get back to his old self.
It will be interesting to see what the 2026 season has in store for the 11-time All-Star and former MVP. It may not change the Angels’ fortunes, but having him healthy would at least give Angels’ fans a little something to show up to the ballpark for.
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