Early Mike Trout Landing Spots amid Trade Rumors from the Angels

It may not be long before Mike Trout is an ex-Los Angeles Angel.

With their 2023 season having collapsed and Shohei Ohtani reportedly unlikely to be in their future, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported Sunday that the Angels will be “open” to trading Trout this winter.

This is only if the three-time American League MVP and 11-time All-Star “indicates to them that he wants out,” but for now he’s not a firm no on the idea.

“When it’s brought up in the offseason, you’ve obviously got to talk about it, and think about it,” the 32-year-old center fielder told the Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. “I haven’t thought about it yet. There are going to be some conversations in the winter, for sure. Just to see the direction of everything and what the plan is.”

Even if Trout does ultimately request a trade, actually making one happen will be complicated. Let’s discuss why before speculating on his most sensible landing spots.

What Is Trout’s Value Right Now?

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Active players don’t come much more accomplished than Trout.

In addition to his awards and accolades, he can boast of leading active major leaguers with a .994 career OPS. He’s also synonymous with wins above replacement, for which he outranks even Ken Griffey Jr.

Yet even setting aside how much leverage the Angels would have following a trade request and in the face of Trout’s no-trade clause, he isn’t especially valuable even on his own merits.

He hasn’t made it through a full season since 2016, and he’ll have played in less than half the Angels’ games over the last three years if he remains sidelined with pain in his left hand following hamate surgery. Even if that’s probably not a long-term concern, his rare back condition is something he’ll have to manage for the remainder of his career.

Trout’s existing contract guarantees him $248.2 million through his age-38 season in 2030. If he was a free agent this winter, it’s doubtful he’d get such a deal on the open market.

As such, any trade the Angels make almost certainly wouldn’t involve dumping Trout’s contract and getting talent back. They’ll have to get creative, whether it involves eating money, packaging him with other players or taking on a bad contract or two.

There’s bound to be interest in Trout if the Angels do make him available, presumably from teams that could promise to add to the meager three games on his postseason resume.

Let’s begin the landing spots speculation with five lesser fits—for the record, the Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners and St. Louis Cardinals just missed the cut—before moving on to five better fits. With help from Baseball Trade Values, trade proposals have been provided for the latter.

10-6: Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Astros, Atlanta

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10. New York Yankees

Record: 73-72

Outfield WAR: 1.0 (29th)

The Yankees are worth pondering as a suitor for Trout because…well, because they’re the Yankees. But with Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton already weighing down their books, the last thing they need is another aging, injury-prone, right-handed-hitting outfielder.

9. New York Mets

Record: 66-78

Outfield WAR: 5.1 (18th)

No matter how much of his contract they’d have to take on, there’s little doubt that Mets owner Steve Cohen can afford Trout. He’s also proven to be a big fan of star power since buying the team in 2020. But then again, he just blew up a star-studded roster and it’s unclear when he’ll be willing to go all-in on a new one.

8. Boston Red Sox

Record: 73-72

Outfield WAR: 7.7 (10th)

Mike Trout and the Green Monster? Sounds like fun! And if free agency claims Justin Turner and Adam Duvall, the Red Sox will have a need for an impact right-handed hitter. But starting pitching will need to come first, lest the Red Sox risk a repeat of the 4.86 ERA their rotation has posted in 2023.

7. Houston Astros

Record: 82-64

Outfield WAR: 11.1 (2nd)

Mike Trout and the Crawford Boxes? That also sounds fun! And with Michael Brantley only signed for this year, the Astros could potentially rotate Trout and Yordan Álvarez at left field and designated hitter. Yet a risky play of this magnitude would be out of the ordinary for Houston, which is to say nothing of whether the Angels would deal with an AL West rival.

6. Atlanta

Record: 95-50

Outfield WAR: 11.5 (1st)

Wishful thinking? Yeah, maybe. The notion of Trout joining Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson in one of the best offenses of all time has that kind of power. But even if most of the big money is attached to team-friendly deals with homegrown players, the club’s payroll being pumped to the max probably makes this unlikely.

5. Texas Rangers

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Record: 80-64

Outfield WAR: 6.5 (13th)

The question of whether the Angels would deal Trout to an AL West rival also applies here, and then there’s whether the Rangers would add more long-term payroll commitments on top of what they owe Corey Seager, Marcus Semien and Jacob deGrom.

Then again, why not form a super-lineup?

The Rangers already have an offense that leads the American League in scoring, but left field and center field are relative weaknesses. Trout could upgrade either or both spots and provide additional support for a DH spot that’s also struggled to produce.

As for why Trout would greenlight a trade, it’s doubtful that this year’s rise as a contender will be a one-off for the Rangers. And despite its reputation, Globe Life Field isn’t a terrible place for power hitters like himself.

Trade Proposal: Texas Rangers get OF Mike Trout, LHP Patrick Sandoval, RHP Carlos Estévez and $80 Million; Los Angeles Angels get SS Sebastian Walcott

In this deal, the Rangers would get Trout, a good left-handed starter and a good closer, with the Angels offloading about $170 million for a prospect ranked by B/R’s Joel Reuter as the No. 91 talent in all of MLB. The trouble is that this deal would effectively dilute the value of Sandoval and Estévez, either or both of whom could fetch a haul on their own.

4. San Francisco Giants

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Record: 74-71

Outfield WAR: 3.4 (24th)

If there’s a problem with this idea, it’s that it’s hard to imagine the Giants liking Trout’s medicals any more than they liked Carlos Correa’s. We all know what happened there.

There’s no doubt, however, that the Giants are desperate for a name-brand star.

They’d have plenty of it right now if they had gotten their way on not just Correa, but also Giancarlo Stanton, Bryce Harper and Aaron Judge. But all four either spurned them or fell through their clutches, to the detriment of a 2023 lineup that lacks a big bopper.

Trout could be that guy in theory, and one can imagine him being willing to join up with a generally well-run organization that has some young talent on the rise. Yes, even if it means having to take hacks at the notoriously pitcher-friendly Oracle Park.

Trade Proposal: San Francisco Giants get OF Mike Trout and $85 Million; Los Angeles Angels get OF Mitch Haniger and LHP Carson Whisenhunt

Here’s a bad contract swap, albeit not quite an equitable one since Haniger is only owed $20 million after this season. Whisenhunt, ranked by Reuter as MLB’s No. 74 prospect, would be a good get for the Angels, but it would be better for them if they didn’t have to eat so much money even while taking on a bad contract in a deal.

3. San Diego Padres

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Record: 68-78

Outfield WAR: 10.9 (3rd)

This year hasn’t gone like the Padres hoped, which marks another frustrating miss under president of baseball operations of AJ Preller.

But since Preller only seems to be capable of doubling down, it’s doubtful the Padres will use the offseason to change direction.

If they fancy pairing another slugger with Manny Machado, Juan Soto, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Xander Bogaerts, they could do worse than Trout. He could supplant Trent Grisham in center field in 2024 and then move to left if Soto subsequently left as a free agent.

As to whether Trout would be willing to take a chance on the Padres, he could perhaps be swayed by how they’ve played 15 more playoff games in the last four years than he’s played in his entire career.

Trade Proposal: San Diego Padres get OF Mike Trout and $65 Million; Los Angeles Angels get 1B Jake Cronenworth and RHP Dylan Lesko

This deal would arguably favor the Angels, as they’d have to eat “only” $65 million in exchange for Reuter’s No. 55 prospect and a guy who was an All-Star in 2021 and 2022. But that’s also the catch. The Padres would probably only do this deal if they were convinced Cronenworth’s failure to thrive as an everyday first baseman in 2023 is somehow permanent.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers

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Record: 88-56

Outfield WAR: 10.4 (4th)

Would a team as risk-averse as the Dodgers really choose now as the time to pursue Trout? For that matter, would Dodgers-averse Angels owner Arte Moreno allow such a thing?

These are good questions…but, well, come on. You thought you were going to get through this thing and not come upon the Dodgers? Please.

Besides, they could use a guy like Trout. Their outfield is strong in general, but Mookie Betts is doing a lot of heavy lifting alongside merely OK production from James Outman in center and David Peralta and others in left. Further, J.D. Martinez is only signed for this year at DH.

At least from an outsider’s perspective, whether Trout would accept a trade to the Dodgers is less questionable. He and Betts played together at this year’s World Baseball Classic and generally seem tight. Otherwise, contenders don’t get more consistent than the Dodgers.

Trade Proposal: Los Angeles Dodgers get OF Mike Trout, LHP Patrick Sandoval and $70 Million; Los Angeles Angels get RHP Tony Gonsolin and C Dalton Rushing

This is vaguely similar to the Texas pitch, but the difference is in the return for the Angels. It’s simply a better one, as Gonsolin would be a worthwhile post-Tommy John upside play and Rushing is the Dodgers’ top prospect and No. 54 overall in MLB. From the other side, both look expendable for the Dodgers.

1. Philadelphia Phillies

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Record: 79-66

Outfield WAR: 6.6 (12th)

Of course the Phillies are the No. 1 hypothetical destination for Trout. They had to be.

It is, after all, no secret by now that his hometown of Millville, New Jersey is less than an hour’s drive from Philly and that his preferred NFL team is the Eagles. It would also be just plain cool to see him and Bryce Harper play together after so many years of being associated with each other.

For his part, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is no stranger to blockbuster trades and he’s already built the Phillies lineup around star sluggers. Trout would fit perfectly, even if it meant bumping Kyle Schwarber to DH on a full-time basis.

The Phillies’ approach is a volatile one, but it yielded a trip to the World Series in 2022 and they’re angled in that direction once again in 2023. All the more reason for Trout to say yes, no?

Trade Proposal: Philadelphia Phillies get OF Mike Trout and $65 Million; Los Angeles Angels get OF Nick Castellanos and RHP Mick Abel

Though Castellanos made the National League All-Star team this year, he only has an exactly average 100 OPS+ to show for his two seasons in Philadelphia. Swapping him out for Trout would be an upgrade worthy of the accompanying risk for the Phillies, even if it meant losing Reuter’s No. 23 prospect in the process.