{"id":609020,"date":"2026-03-06T03:54:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T03:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/609020\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T03:54:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T03:54:13","slug":"angels-announce-mike-trout-move-before-athletics-game-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/609020\/","title":{"rendered":"Angels Announce Mike Trout Move Before Athletics Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Los Angeles Angels<\/a> added several notable bounce\u2011back candidates in MLB<\/a> free agency, hoping that at least a few of them can meaningfully elevate the roster. However, nothing would raise the organization\u2019s ceiling more than Mike Trout<\/a> returning to the prime version of himself.<\/p>\n

Trout\u00a0appears to be\u00a0moving better in camp than he has in years, and the Angels are hoping he can finally pair good health with consistent production. Last year, the 34\u2011year\u2011old veteran stayed on the field but saw his offensive numbers dip.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Across 130 games, Trout posted a .232 batting average, .359 on\u2011base percentage, .797 OPS, 26 home runs and 64 RBIs. While still productive, Trout is a three\u2011time MVP, an 11\u2011time All\u2011Star\u00a0and a nine\u2011time Silver Slugger, so expectations for him have always been far higher.<\/p>\n

\"Los<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Mike Trout (27)Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

(Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Trout has also been an elite defender throughout his career, something he did not show last season as he spent most of his time\u00a0operating\u00a0as the team\u2019s designated hitter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

That is expected to change this year, as Trout has committed to returning to the outfield and even playing center field again. There is\u00a0good\u00a0reason for that confidence.<\/p>\n

Trout was measured in camp reaching a sprint speed similar to his prime nearly a decade ago, a strong indication that he is finally back to full health.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, as the Angels prepared for a spring training game against the Athletics<\/a>, Trout was listed in the lineup hitting second and playing left field. Moments before first pitch, the Angels announced a change, moving Trout to center field and shifting Bryce Teodosio to left.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

While the club did not specify the reason, the move is a clear positive sign because it shows the Angels are comfortable testing Trout\u2019s defensive workload early in camp rather than easing him in.<\/p>\n

Trout is still\u00a0signed to\u00a0a 12\u2011year, $426.5 million contract, but he is now past the halfway point of the deal and has yet to experience postseason success with the Angels.<\/p>\n

There is still a chance this season looks different, and if Trout can resemble the best version of himself, it raises both the floor and ceiling of a roster filled with intriguing pieces.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Related: Pirates Announce Konnor Griffin News at Spring Training<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Mar 5, 2026, where it first appeared in the MLB<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Los Angeles Angels added several notable bounce\u2011back candidates in MLB free agency, hoping that at least a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":609021,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2390],"tags":[7900,291,5,24202,12571,2179,3509,1165,446,3223,774,56,3224,3222,603,4,1229,2052],"class_list":["post-609020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles-angels","tag-alek-manoah","tag-angels","tag-baseball","tag-bryce-teodosio","tag-christian-moore","tag-jo-adell","tag-jorge-soler","tag-la","tag-la-angels","tag-laangels","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-angels","tag-losangeles","tag-losangelesangels","tag-mike-trout","tag-mlb","tag-vaughn-grissom","tag-zach-neto"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116180213937445445","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/609020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=609020"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/609020\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/609021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=609020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=609020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=609020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}