Los Angeles Angels: 3 Reasons Why They Must Extend Mike Trout Now
The Los Angeles Angels continue to make small moves this offseason to try and compete in 2019, but their biggest priority should be extending Trout.
Their is no question that the Los Angeles Angels would love to keep Mike Trout in Anaheim, or wherever they might play in the future, for a long time.
They’ve made it pretty clear that their intentions this offseason where to begin contract extension talks with Trout.
Unfortunately for Angels fans, we’ve yet to hear anything about those discussions.
Trout is signed through the 2020 season, which means the Angels only control him for this season and the next.
He has the chance to hit the free agent market at 29-years-old with at least two AL MVP awards in his pocket.
One thing that could be holding up discussions this offseason are the Bryce Harper and Manny Machado sweepstakes. I think what those two sign for will go a long way in determining what kind of contract Mike Trout can get from the Angels.
While those two players are great, Trout is obviously better than both, and even though he’ll be a little older when he hits free agency, he still should get more money than Harper and Machado.
Another thing that might be holding Trout back is the conceived competitiveness of this Angels team. I really doubt that the moves they’ve made this offseason have convinced him the Angels are a World Series contender.
The front office is going to have to do a better job of proving to Mike Trout that they can build a serious contender.
But if the Angels are going to make Trout an Angel for life, they need to do it now.
They Will Lose Him in Free Agency
I would almost be willing to be my house that if Mike Trout reaches free agency, he will never play for the Los Angels Angels again.
If Mike Trout truly wants to be an Angel for life, he will sign an extension with the team before he hits free agency.
Once he becomes a free agent, there are just too many teams who are built to win right now that can outbid the Angels.
Of course, a lot of people believe that if/when Trout becomes a free agent that the Philadelphia Phillies will back the Brinks truck up to his house.
Trout grew up near Philadelphia and is a huge Eagles fan. As a Braves fan and someone who loves rooting for Mike Trout, I do not want to see this happen.
But the Phillies wouldn’t be the only team bidding for Trout, you know the cross-town Dodgers, as well as the evil Empire in the Bronx, would unload a ton of money for the perennial MVP candidate.
With the uncertainty of where they’ll even play in the future, a mediocre farm system, dead money already invested into Albert Pujols and Justin Upton, and no clear future for the team, I find it hard to believe that Trout would choose the Angles in free agency over the likes of the Dodgers, Yankees, and Phillies.
To Get Clarity for the Future
From the Los Angeles Angels standpoint, they need to try and lock up Trout now so that they can get a clear picture of what the future of this team will be.
Like I stated above, I think there is zero chance they sign him in free agency, so if that’s the case — and they aren’t going to win the next two seasons — they have to think about getting the best return possible for the greatest player in baseball.
Right now the Angels don’t have a ton of top prospects in their minor league system. But if they knew Trout wasn’t going to sign an extension, they could trade him and instantly have a top farm system.
But either way, ownership would at least have a better understanding where this team is going — whether that be with or without Trout.
Right now they kind of seem hamstrung because of Trout and not knowing what to do. I think in most cases they would have already torn this thing down and tried to rebuild, but they can’t do that with the best player in the game on their roster.
Instead, they’ve tried to work within their means to put a winning product on the field with stopgap-type players.
A lot of that is due to a terrible Pujols contract that is also responsible for holding this team back.
In my opinion, if Trout isn’t going to resign, then I think the Angels would look to rebuild for when the Pujols contract expires after the 2021 season.
Angels Fans Deserve to Keep Mike Trout
While it hasn’t been easy for Los Angeles Angels fans to see their team continue to miss the playoffs the last several years, the one thing they could always hang their hat on was that they have Mike Trout.
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And when Mike Trout is on your favorite team and you get to watch him every night, and you get to go see him at your ballpark 81 times a year, that means something.
Plus, there is no guarantee that if they trade Trout for prospects or use the money for him elsewhere that they’ll contend any time in the future.
Trout seems to love it in LA, and the fans there adore him.
You have to believe that eventually, the Angels will put the right ingredients on the field to make them a winner with Trout.
Angels fans have been through enough losing with Trout, they deserve to be there when he finally gets to be on a winning team.
And even if they don’t, they can rest at night knowing they get to be on the Hall of Fame plaque for the possibly the greatest player in the history of our game.
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So for the sake of the fans, the Los Angeles Angels front office needs to be doing everything they can to make Mike Trout an Angel for life this offseason.