Los Angeles Angels: Could Mike Trout finish outside of the Top 2 in AL MVP vote?

A stint on the disabled list and stiff competition could cause Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout to finish lower than second in the AL MVP voting for the first full season of his career.

With the 2017 MLB regular season now in its final week, talk regarding the potential MVP-award winners is starting to heat up. It may be particularly interesting to see where Los Angles Angels superstar Mike Trout may finish in the AL MVP the voting this time around.

After a short stint in the majors back in 2011, Trout became a full-blown superstar during his Rookie of the Year Award-winning campaign in 2012. Since that 2012 season, Trout has also finished either first or second in the AL MVP voting in each of his first five years in the big leagues.

Trout finished second to Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera in both 2012 and 2013, before finally winning the award in 2014. He finished second to Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson in 2015, and then went on to win the AL MVP award for the second time in his career last season.

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Trout’s 2017 campaign certainly stacks up very well against his previous AL MVP-award winning seasons. However, he unfortunately missed a considerable chunk of the year. In late May, suffered a torn ligament in his left thumb, which required surgery and caused him to be placed on the DL for the first time of his career. At the time, Trout was hitting .337/.461/.742 with 16 home runs and 36 RBI. Trout would not return until after the All-Star break.

Through 109 games, Trout has now slashed .309/.444/.623 with 30 home runs and 67 RBI. His .444 on base percentage and .623 slugging percentage lead the American League. His 1.068 OPS and 181 wRC+ currently lead all of baseball. He ranks third in the American League with a 6.4 fWAR. Had Trout not missed six weeks of the season, it could be scary to imagine where his numbers might be right now.

Trout’s challengers

In addition to the DL stint possibly hurting Trout’s MVP case, there are several other players who are likely to receive significant consideration for the award as well. Two of them are Aaron Judge and Jose Altuve, the only American League players who lead Trout in fWAR.

Judge, of course, was the talk of baseball after a monster first half and an unforgettable Home Run Derby performance prior to the 2017 MLB All-Star game. Although he had a slow start to the second half, he has picked up the pace once again in September. On Monday, Judge hit his 50th home run, breaking Mark McGwire‘s record for most home runs by a rookie. It was a record that stood for 30 years. Judge’s 50 home runs also lead the American League, and he has slashed .283/.418/.620 on the season.

Altuve, on the other hand, made the fifth All-Star team of his seven-year career in 2017. He is just one hit shy of his fourth consecutive 200-hit season and on track to lead the American League in hits for the fourth straight year as well. Altuve, who is currently slashing .348/.414/.554 with 24 home runs and 81 RBI, is also likely to win his third batting title in four years. Last season, Altuve finished third in the AL MVP voting.

Other candidates who are certainly deserving of MVP consideration include Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Indians. Lindor and Ramirez have posted fWARs of 5.7 and 6.1, respectively, and have played majors roles in helping the Indians achieve an AL-best record of 98-58.

Angels likely to miss postseason

When it comes to Trout’s MVP case, one final element worth pointing out is the fact that the Angels are likely to miss the postseason for the third consecutive year. While the Houston Astros ran away with the AL West, the Angels did have a shot at a Wild Card spot not so long ago, but it is quickly fading.

At the end of August, the Angels showed that they were ready to make a run by acquiring Justin Upton and Brandon Phillips, but they are now on the brink of elimination, trailing the Minnesota Twins by five games for the second AL Wild Card spot. A postseason appearance could strengthen Trout’s chances of earning yet another top-2 finish in the AL MVP voting, but at this point, it appears very unlikely that we will be seeing the Angels in the AL Wild Card game.

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With the season that he has had, it is certainly still possible that Trout could win the award or finish as runner-up yet again, but it also wouldn’t be shocking to see him finish third or lower for the first time either. Regardless of what happens this year, one can expect that Trout, who is remarkable still only 26 years, will have plenty more top-2 finishes in the MVP voting as long as he stays healthy.