{"id":293818,"date":"2026-06-03T00:45:43","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T00:45:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/293818\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T00:45:43","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T00:45:43","slug":"obligatory-annual-blog-about-the-phillies-bringing-mike-trout-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/293818\/","title":{"rendered":"Obligatory, Annual Blog About the Phillies Bringing Mike Trout Home"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n Phillies
\n <\/a><\/p>\n


\n \"Matt
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

\"May<\/p>\n

Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Mike Trout has been playing some good baseball this season \u2013 his slash line is .242\/.410\/.488 in 60 games \u2013 and in some ways, he\u2019s playing as well as he ever has. His .410 OBP is elite stuff, and 57 walks leads Major League Baseball. The .242 AVG isn\u2019t anything to write home about, but his power is still there (14 HR to go with an OPS right around .900) even though he\u2019s still striking out a bunch \u2013 but he\u2019s always done that, so who cares. The bottom line is that he\u2019s been a productive and, most importantly, healthy everyday player for the Angels:\u00a0<\/p>\n

And that is why we, as Phillies fans, must talk about bringing the boy home. The Angels are 23-38 and last place in the AL West. Trout has four more years after this one at $35 million on his contract. But we have to do this at least once a year and right now is the time. That\u2019s just the way it is, in part because this great Scott Lauber interview with Joe Maddon in the Inquirer<\/a> has me thinking about it. There\u2019s some good stuff in here:<\/p>\n

Q: \u201cYou managed Trout for parts of three years, which I think equips you to handle this question: Why do you think he has never asked for a trade from the Angels? And do you think that will ever change?\u201d<\/p>\n

A: \u201cHe\u2019s from Millville, [N.J.], not far from Philadelphia. He\u2019s a small town guy. I\u2019m a small town guy. I\u2019m in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania. My hometown, Hazleton, is right over there. Sensibility-wise, it\u2019s like loyalty. We were raised that way. I was never of the ilk that I\u2019m going to walk into the boss\u2019 office and demand anything. I just think there\u2019s a level of loyalty that has been embedded in us, whether it\u2019s through your parents, your coaches, your teachers, the city itself.<\/p>\n

So, I just think the reason why that hasn\u2019t happened [is] because that\u2019s who he is. He\u2019s not going to do that. And then you got [owner] Arte [Moreno] on the other side, who, I don\u2019t think wants to be the guy that trades Mike Trout, either. I think there\u2019s these opposing forces at work right here. The only way it\u2019s going to happen, I think, is if the Angels decide that they\u2019d like to do this, they would then approach Mike about it. And then if they were to do it that way, I think that would become more amenable to Mike. But for him to be proactively trying to get this done, I don\u2019t see that happening.<\/p>\n

\u2026 I really thought when Shohei [Ohtani] left a couple years ago [in free agency], they should have traded Mike at that point, although he had been hurt a lot. Right now, he\u2019s playing every day, his OPS is good, he\u2019s getting on base a lot. He looks fine in the outfield. I watch him move around, he looks like he\u2019s pretty healthy right now. So this is the optimal moment to do it, or you just can eat it. \u2026 Mike\u2019s not going to be proactively involved in setting this up. It\u2019s got to be the Angels to him, I think. And then at that point, I think Mike would probably acquiesce and move it from there. But I just think it has a lot to do with where he\u2019s from, how he grew up, who his parents are. I think you\u2019re not going to be very demanding to your employers, your boss at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not an insider, of course, but all this sounds right to me. I think if Trout was going to ask for a trade, he would\u2019ve done it by now. But for whatever reason, right or wrong, he doesn\u2019t see himself as the kind of guy to do this. Which, for the record, is weird as hell. I don\u2019t understand it. Insane that Mike Trout views himself as an \u201caw shucks\u201d small town guy who\u2019s too shy to ask for a trade. What a weird way to think of yourself: \u201cHello, yes. My name is Mike Trout. I\u2019m 34 years old. I\u2019m a millionaire hundreds of times over. I have two children. But the main thing about me is that I\u2019m bashful. I blush. I hide behind adults\u2019 legs. I can\u2019t look you in the eye. When a stranger tries talking to me, I walk right into my mom\u2019s lap and hide my face. I could never ask for a trade. That\u2019s not the way of the shy men. I weigh 235 pounds. 200-plus pound guys can be timid. Weight has nothing to do with it. I\u2019m a withdrawn 200-pounder.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyway, my opinion on his personality aside (seems like a very weird guy), he\u2019d be an incredibly nice addition to the Phils\u2019 lineup, not that I think it\u2019ll happen. I agree with Maddon\u2019s assessment: if the Phillies are going to trade for Mike Trout, it feels like it\u2019d require 1) the Phillies approaching the Angels and getting them to engage in serious talks, and 2) the Angels actually wanting to make the move. I could see Trout being talked into it if it\u2019s the Angels\u2019 idea \u2013 but unless the Angels take the initiative, I just don\u2019t see it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s to hoping the Angels realize they\u2019re better off getting something than nothing for their future Hall of Famer, or Mike Trout takes a MasterClass on confidence and asks for a trade already.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Matt<\/p>\n

Matt Schultz is a comedy and sports writer from Philadelphia. He\u2019s written extensively for ClickHole, The Onion, and Conan O\u2019Brien\u2019s Team Coco. His work has been featured in Vulture, Deadspin, The A.V. Club, Paste Magazine, and other publications. Much of his sports journalism can be found on college basketball websites that don\u2019t exist anymore (PhilaHoops Heads rise up\u2026)<\/p>\n

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