Originally, he was a scarier hitter than Ohtani, but he returned to the days when he already dominated 10 MVPs in four pitches

Aug 07, 2025

Originally, he was a scarier hitter than Ohtani, but he returned to the days when he already dominated 10 MVPs in four pitches
LA Angels Mike Trout hits a three-run left-hander in the third inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Angel Stadium on the 7th (Korea time). ImagesYonhap News



Originally, he was a scarier hitter than Ohtani, but he returned to the days when he already dominated 10 MVPs in four pitches
Mike Trout batting against the Cincinnati Reds on August 23, 2023 (Korea Standard Time). Shohei Ohtani can be seen in the back. It is the last game that the two players played together. AP Yonhap News
Los Angeles Angels Mike Trout has reached the 20-home run mark for the first time in three years.

Trout played as the third designated hitter in the home game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Angel Stadium on the 7th (Korea time) and swung two hits and three RBIs in four at-bats. But the Angels fell to their knees 4-5.

Trout struck out in the bottom of the first inning and hit a three-run homer to tie the game in the third inning, trailing 1-4. Trout, who entered the second at-bat with runners on first and third with two outs, pulled Tampa Bay starter Shane Baz's sixth 86.7-mile curve from a full count and well over the left fence. The ball, which flew at an angle of 26 degrees and a speed of 107.5 miles, was inserted into the bullpen 433 feet behind the left fence.




With 20 home runs this season and a career-high 398 home runs, Trout reached 20 home runs for the first time in three years since 2022, when he hit 40 home runs.

After striking out swinging in the fifth inning when the score was 4-4, he went out as a leadoff hitter in the eighth inning, trailing 4-5, and hit an infield hit toward the shortstop, but failed to reach home due to the failure of a follow-up hit.

Following Trout, the Angels had a chance to load the bases with no outs with Taylor Ward's walk and Joe Adele's catcher's batting interference on base, but Logan Ohafi, Luis Renheepo and Christian Moore were struck out by Tampa Bay right-hander Griffin Jax one after another, failing to score a point and eventually losing.




For Trout, it was a game where he felt the team's 'present'.

Originally, he was a scarier hitter than Ohtani, but he returned to the days when he already dominated 10 MVPs in four pitches
Trout runs out looking at the ball after hitting a three-run shot to the left side in the bottom of the third inning. AP Yonhap News
However, Trout is recreating his performance reminiscent of his heyday this year. As of today, he has a batting average of 0.240 (74 hits in 308 at-bats), 20 homers, 50 RBIs, 48 points, 58 walks, 114 strikeouts, and an OPS of 0.835 in 86 games. In particular, he hit a batting average of 0.272 (55 hits in 202 at-bats), 11 homers, 32 RBIs and an OPS of 0.887 in 58 games since he returned from a knee injury.

It should be noted that Trout has already gained 10 intentional four pitches this season. This is similar to the level of the 2010s when he dominated MVP. It is the first time in six years that he has recorded four double-digit intentional pitches since 2019 (14), when he won his third MVP.




To interpret this, there is no hitter to protect Trout as Onati Shohei leaves.

As of this day, it ranks sixth overall in the four-ball category of the intentional district. Aaron Judge (27), Jose Ramirez (17), Ohtani (13), Caloli (12) and Juan Soto (11) got more intentional four pitches than Trout. In other words, it means that Trout is back as a horror hitter, just like the best batsmen in existence.

Originally, he was a scarier hitter than Ohtani, but he returned to the days when he already dominated 10 MVPs in four pitches
Mike Trout only missed for a month in May this year due to a knee injury and has been playing in a healthy body since then. AFP Yonhap News
Trout, who was born in August 1991, is under contract until 2030, when he turns 39. In March 2019, he signed an extension contract for $426.5 million (about 613.1 billion won) for 12 years and decided to retire from the Angels. He is the first player in Major League history to sign a $400 million contract.

However, he won his third MVP in his career with a batting average of 0.291, 45 home runs, 104 RBIs, 110 points, and OPS 1.083 in the first season of the contract, and his body began to suffer after playing a shortened season in 2020.

In 2021, on May 18, his 36th game of the season, he ended the season with a right scapula injury while playing base running against the Cleveland Guardians. In 2022, he was diagnosed with costal spinal dysfunction from July to August, so he had to sit out for a month. However, after returning on August 20, he showed his strength to hit 16 home runs and recorded 40 home runs in 119 games of the season.

However, after going to the WBC in March 2023, while struggling with a drop in hitting sense since mid-May, he effectively ended the season with a fractured left palate while batting against the San Diego Padres on July 4. He returned to action against the Cincinnati Reds on August 23, but was reinstated due to a recurrence of his injury.

The same is true last year. He was diagnosed with damage to the meniscus in his left knee at the end of April and ended the season early again. He ended the season with the smallest career game (29 games).

In the four years from 2021 to 2024, he played only 41% of his entire schedule. From the Angels' point of view, they just paid an annual salary of $37 million per year.

This year, he returned to the IL on May 2nd with a bruised left knee and rehabilitated for nearly a month before returning on May 31st. However, he has continued to play without any problems since then. A healthy Trout is still a scary hitter.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.