Mike Trout’s under the radar career-season for the Los Angeles Angels

Mike Trout is off to the best start in his MLB career for the Los Angeles Angels, yet is somehow flying under the radar.

With attention focusing on the Bronx Bombers duo of the New York Yankees in Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge; Los Angeles Angels superstar Mike Trout somehow is lost in the shuffle among the MLB elite.

Even within his own clubhouse, it’s all about the International sensation Shohei Ohtani and the recent 3,000 hits milestone by future baseball Hall of Fame slugger Albert Pujols.

Speaking of future Hall of Famers, Mike Trout is off to the best start in his career and is getting little attention for his efforts. Thankfully for you, the focus will shift from the East coast bias to what people should really be talking about — for a few minutes, at least.

2018 is off to a bang for the five-tool superstar, but on the surface, it appears to be just “another” Mike Trout-like season. He’s currently slashing .298/.440/.616 with 12 home runs, 34 runs plated, and eight bags swiped.

Statistically, his current pace isn’t far off from his career average of .306/.411/.568, 36 home runs, 122 runs scored, 99 RBIs,182 hits, and 29 stolen bases. What’s so different that makes this season standout from this mindblowing career stat line?

Remember, Mike Trout has two American League MVP awards and won Rookie of the Year honors in 2011. It’s all about launch angle and bat speed, which are at an all-time best for Mike Trout in 2018.

According to Manny Randhawa of MLB.com, Mike Trout “barrel rate” and “hard-hit rate” are on pace to meet or even beat his personal best.

Mike Trout’s “hard-hit” rate season by season
2015: 48.9
2016: 40.5
2017: 39.9
2018: 46.9

Of Trout’s 113 balls in play so far this year, 19 have been barreled — that’s a barrel per batted-ball rate of 16.8 percent. Last season, his barrel per batted-ball rate was 13.3 percent, and his season-high since Statcast™ began tracking also came in ’15, at 16.4 percent. Trout’s average exit velocity is up from 88.8 mph in 2017, to 91.8 mph this season.

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That’s just flat out silly. Scary, in fact.

Mike Trout’s “barrel” rate season by season since 2015
2015: 16.4
2016: 14.6
2017: 13.3
2018: 16.8

He is also making more contact this season, swinging and missing less than he did in 2017 — dropping to 17.3 after hovering at 18.2 percent in 2017 and an even higher 22 percent during the 2015 campaign.

Mike Trout is also not chasing balls outside of the zone as frequently, with a rate of 17 percent in 2018 — two percent better than last year.

The 2018 season for Mike Trout can be summed up in a nutshell during this at-bat on May 11 against veteran hurler Fernando Rodney of the Minnesota Twins. Looking at the video, it seems to be just another lineout to shortstop.

Upon further examination, that’s no ordinary putout. He smashed that ball at an alarming rate of 118 MPH, which is insane for a shot that did not leave the yard or the infield for that matter.

If Mike Trout continues to match or improve on these numbers in 2018, he may be worthy of racking up another AL MVP award. With as incredible as he’s performed the last seven-plus years in the big leagues, 2018 could be his most impressive slate to date — with 2019 and beyond even better.

Next: What 3,000 hits would have meant for Pujols in St. Louis

Hopefully, baseball fans are genuinely appreciating the talents of Mike Trout, who is overlooked by the media’s focus on the sexy New York Yankees, which is a shame. Mike Trout is an exceptional talent, a player who deserves higher praise and more love.