Mike Trout needs his own thread

One of the cooler things Mike Trout does every year: instead of having his Millville HS number retired, he comes back and gives it to the new captains every year. https://t.co/iNbhQOqIMA

— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) February 6, 2020

Mike Trout hitting rockets isn’t exclusive to the baseball field. pic.twitter.com/tuEyIzxqQ5

— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) March 2, 2020

absolute liftoff

does anyone want to know what Trout's standout skill is?

If someone wants to know what Trout’s standout skill is, then, all you have to do is tell them he is more than twice as good at hitting pitches that are in the shadow of the strike zone as any other hitter in baseball. Tell them about how tough it is for hitters to hit pitches in the shadow of the zone, and how most of them cost their team piles of runs in those situations over the course of a season, and that Trout adds more value in what are supposed to be his least-advantageous situations than most hitters do in any situation, period. Maybe tell them about run expectancy, and how we’re not necessarily measuring Trout’s value in actual runs, but in perceived runs added in a context-neural, all-things-equal situation.

well, i think my job here is done.

Wait, that’s way too clunky. How many times are you gonna use the word “situation,” buddy? Sheesh. Instead, say Trout’s standout skill is dread. Say that there is a cliché that athletes and coaches often use about how if you come up with the right game plan and execute it, then you’ll be successful, only Trout is impervious to game plans. He succeeds against the types of pitches hitters are expected to succeed at, but he also succeeds where hitters are supposed to fail, and does so to an extent that is not replicated by anyone. Because of that, pitchers have nowhere to turn. Baseball is a zero-sum game; if Trout is never at a disadvantage, then the pitcher always is.

alright then, that does clarify things, so i'll just be-

Or you can just say he’s the best player in baseball. That stands out pretty well, too.

...

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/where-mike-trout-stands-out-most/

those stats are really cool. I have to find sortable tables for all those zone stats

i like them too. now i'm curious who wins the Vladimir Guerrero Sr award for best waste pitch hitter

the world demands to know. looks like they’re sourced from baseball savant but I can’t figure out how to find them

i couldn't find it on their website either, but found it through google:

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/visuals/swing-take?playerId=545361&year=2019

as usual at baseballsavant, they don't make it easy to sort or customize their data, and they bury interesting features. for example, you can switch the filter to pitchers, and i think that gives you a look at how different pitchers do in different areas of the strike zone, which is interesting in a different way

yeah, i think that's right. because it shows gerrit cole as having a -58 run value, with most of the surplus (or deficit i guess) coming from pitches in and on the edge of the zone, which makes sense for him

lol, i guess all pitchers do pretty well on the edge of the zone, duh.

Mike Trout Is Now Fully Qualified for the Hall of Fame

so at least we have that

on paternity leave

Beckham Aaron Trout. B.A.T. BAT

— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) August 1, 2020

is that for Aaron #44?

homer 1st ab back from paternity leave, natch

29 today. he can beat the age curve, right?

right?

gonna suck when we inevitably have the "how many records would he have broken if not for the abridged 2020 season" convo

most of those will be for counting stats, so ptui!

the record is six

Mike Trout has now homered on his 21st, 22nd, 24th, 26th and 29th birthdays.

Homer in 5 of 7 career birthday games.

— Christopher Kamka (@ckamka) August 8, 2020

whose record?

too obvious guess: Bonds?

A-Rod, tied w/ a lesser light

Mark Reynolds

8 homers and a baby

And a valuable baseball card.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/sports/mike-trout-rookie-baseball-card-top-1-million-auction

Hit his 300th tonight.

Which might make him the 10th youngest--not sure based on this.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/yankees-giancarlo-stanton-becomes-the-fifth-fastest-player-to-300-home-runs-in-mlb-history/

(Trout turned 29 on August 7.)

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29820376/angels-mike-trout-sets-franchise-record-300th-career-home-run

Trout catches Salmon

That's great!

http://fishingbooker.com/blog/trout-vs-salmon/

haha

*a doff of the cap at Tracer*

*giggles nervously*

*flounces off*

Trout vs. Betts:

https://www.mlb.com/news/debate-mookie-betts-mike-trout-best-player-mlb

https://i.imgur.com/RalzN3C.jpg

Since betts is still playing and trout is not yes mookie betts is the best player in baseball

*mike trout looks out*

I saw him before his rookie year! Batting ninth!

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ANA/ANA201107090.shtml

― Miss Arlington twirls for the Coal Heavers (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, August 7, 2013 9:45 PM (seven years ago) bookmarkflaglink

CTRL-F "Morb" delivers.

"Every executive lauded Betts for his incredible talent, and while each one of them would be happy to have the Dodgers superstar patrolling right field for their club, the results were nearly unanimous: Eight executives chose Trout, one took Betts, while the other one called it a draw.

https://www.mlb.com/news/mike-trout-mookie-betts-best-mlb-player-poll

The Posnanski article has some interesting points (before talking about the value of Betts having a WS ring) - I didn't realize Trout may be physically slowing down a touch. Just the rigors of playing center, or the foot surgery from a couple of seasons ago?

9 G, .414/.564/.828, 271 wRC+, 1.0 fWAR

ffs

lol he has rendon hitting behind him and is still being walked 25% of the time

meanwhile albert is managing a sturdy -0.2fWAR in 6 games

this trout guy does seem to be good though

just hit his sixth homer, leads the league with 267 wRC+ now. I think it’s funny how every year there’s an article about the people who are going to surpass trout and nope, he’s the best and it’s not close

tbf acuña is making a case

trout has a .500+ OBP rn

yeah his BABIP is over .500

Seems like every year there’s also an article saying “...and he finally has a decent team behind him!”

I wonder if he and Connor McDavid ever talk. I don’t know if either of them are household names in the U.S.

he’s the best and it’s not close

If he keeps going like this all season, no question, still the best. But I don't agree with the "not close"--Betts, Acuna, Tatis (if he keeps going), and Soto (weaker in the field) are all close; if Trout were to go back to the level he played at last season, I think he'd be surpassed. I'd hold off on this question right now.