Angels designated hitter Mike Trout watches his hit clear the wall for a home run in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout watches his hit clear the wall for a home run in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a home run in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout, left, is hugged by teammate Jo Adell after returning to the dugout following his home run in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout waits for a pitch in the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout walks to first bases after his bat made contact with the glove of Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman, who was called for interference in the first inning on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout’s bat makes contact with the glove of Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman, who was called for interference in the first inning on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels shortstop Denzer Guzman throws to first base but can’t get Colorado Rockies first baseman Blaine Crim out in the fourth inning on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout, left, and pitcher Luis García celebrate after a win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Angels catcher Logan O’Hoppe, left, and pitcher Luis García celebrate after a win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
Show Caption
1 of 10
Angels designated hitter Mike Trout watches his hit clear the wall for a home run in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
DENVER — Mike Trout swung the bat and watched the baseball sail into the night, taking with it much of the frustration that had been building inside of him for more than a month.
The Angels superstar slugged the 400th homer of his career, punctuating a 3-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night at Coors Field.
This one came on a 98 mph fastball – just the kind of pitch that has given Trout so much trouble this season – and he launched it 485 feet, his longest homer of the season and the third-longest of his career.
“Finally put a good swing on one, barreled one,” Trout said. “It’s one of my better ones in my career.”
For a player who has won three league MVP awards and is headed to the Hall of Fame the first time he’s on the ballot, the moments like this have been rare lately. Trout, 34, missed much of the previous four seasons because of injuries. This year, despite playing his most games (124) since 2019, his numbers haven’t been there. He’s hitting .229 with a .772 OPS. He has 22 homers this season.
“You get humbled a little bit when you feel like you’re out there and you have so much success, and then you go through rough stretches,” Trout said. “So that’s what I’ve been going through, battling with stuff. It’s good to finally get done this and get this milestone, because it’s definitely one of the things that was on my list coming in.”
It had been nine days since Trout hit No. 399, and six weeks since he hit No. 398. Between those two homers, he endured the longest drought of his career, spanning 28 games.
Trout has said that a problem with the mechanics of his swing has caused his head to move too much, which has prevented him from seeing the ball as well as he should.
“We’ve grinded this year,” Trout said. “It was to a point where, when I was in the cage, it felt really right, and then when I got out here, just didn’t feel right. Just wasn’t seeing the ball. Obviously, with the chase and the strikeouts, it was really tough for me to go up to the box and not be able to see the ball. Just grinding, grinding, grinding. Finally figured out a little bit of stuff out in the last couple days. It sucks that it’s the end of season. Seven more games left. But I felt pretty good the last few days.”
He hit two fly balls to the warning track on Friday night. On Saturday, he reached the milestone in the eighth inning, on a 3-and-1 pitch from right-hander Jaden Hill. The ball sailed into the seats in straightaway center field.
The ball was caught by a fan who was at the game with his wife and two kids, ages 8 and 4. He returned the ball to Trout in exchange for a few autographed bats. He also got the chance to meet with Trout, and he even played catch with him.
Trout’s homer not only ended his milestone quest, but provided a key insurance run to help the Angels (70-85) snap their eight-game losing streak. It was the Angels’ longest losing streak in three years.
Trout became the 59th player in major league history to reach the 400-homer milestone. Trout is the third player to hit No. 400 while wearing an Angels uniform, joining Dave Winfield (in 1991) and Vladimir Guerrero (2009).
His milestone on Saturday stole the spotlight from right-hander Kyle Hendricks, who pitched seven innings to get the victory in his 300th career start.
Hendricks now has a 2.74 ERA in seven career starts at Coors Field, which is the most hitter-friendly environment in the majors.
Hendricks struck out five and didn’t walk any, scattering just three singles. He mostly kept the ball on the ground, and the infield defense took care of the rest.
Second baseman Christian Moore made a sensational backhand stop up the middle. Third baseman Yoán Moncada made the only error, and Hendricks responded by easily retiring the next three, who happened to be the top three in the Rockies’ order.
Hendricks was coming off one of the worst outings of his career, a game in which he allowed nine runs in 3⅓ innings in Seattle. That game came just after his best start of the season, seven scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins.
Hendricks needed to be good because the Angels didn’t produce much either.
They hit three solo homers, with Taylor Ward (No. 34) and Nolan Schanuel (No. 11) connecting before Trout.
Originally Published: September 20, 2025 at 7:54 PM PDT