Mike Trout needs his own thread

considering what the Phils paid Bryce this seems like a bargain

yeah i think that's a bit low

it’s definitely low but you can only break with precedence so much

a much better use of money than signing the 32(?) year old Pujols to 10 years/240.

only 3 years left on that deal!!!!

good news though:

Look, I know we as LA Angels fans do this every year. One way or another, we find ourselves dwelling on the idea of a possible Albert Pujols “resurgence” and year after year we are disappointed, but hear me out.

LA Angels fans, this could be the year. This could really be the one. Albert Pujols is going to have a good year. I’m speaking (writing) it into existence. I am so confident in Pujols have a good year in 2019 that I would bet… absolutely nothing on it.

My lack of confidence aside, Pujols is having himself a solid Spring Training. He had two surgeries over the offseason, undergoing a procedure on his knee that ended his year while also having bone spurs removed in September. Nonetheless, he is putting on a clinic down in Tempe.

In 19 at-bats, Pujols is slashing .474/.545/.694 for the Angels, proving to us all that he can in fact swing a bat. Only two hits have gone for extra bases, a double and a home run, but Pujols has been making good contact every time he steps up to the plate.

Usually at the beginning of Spring Training we get a quote from The Machine telling us he’s in the best shape of his life, has dropped weight, or something of the sort. This year things were relatively quiet as the best right-handed hitter of all time (yeah I said it) showed up in Tempe. The only reports were regarding his Opening Day status, which is looking good so far.

But none of these Spring Training stats matter unless Pujols can carry it into the regular season. And truth be told Angels fans, I think he can.

Last year, Pujols had to play first base 70 times, his highest total since 2014. Obviously you don’t want someone as injury prone as Pujols manning first that often, and 2019 should prove different for him.

To start the year, Pujols will likely be the everyday designated hitter until Shohei Ohtani returns. Justin Bour will likely be playing first base in that period as well. Once Ohtani returns, things will get interesting as all three players are restricted to 1B/DH.

Obviously, Ohtani will be in the lineup everyday except for the occasional day off and if his rehab towards pitching in 2020 interferes with the game. The Angels are intent on having him ready for 2020 as a pitcher, and have stated that his rehab will take priority.

So when Ohtani doesn’t play, Pujols naturally slides into the DH role. When Ohtani is in the lineup though, there will be some sort of platoon between Pujols and Bour. It could be a natural lefty-righty platoon considering Bour absolutely mashed against right-handed pitching, but that is yet to be determined.

The reason for optimism with Pujols this season comes directly from the fact that he won’t be playing first base nearly as much, keeping him well rested. If Pujols can start the season hot at the plate and carry that momentum once Ohtani comes back, the top of the Angels’ lineup becomes very, very scary.

Albert Pujols has the Los Angeles Angels in a very tough spot. He signed a 10-year, $240 million contract as a free agent prior to the 2012 season. And despite diminishing returns, he intends to fulfill every minute of it, he told Boomskie on Baseball in an exclusive interview a few days ago.

Inclusive of this one, he has three seasons to go on that deal and the Angels owe him $87 million. He turned 39 in January.

“Well, that’s what I signed, right? I signed a 10-year deal,” Pujols said in a nearly empty clubhouse at Tempe Diablo Stadium. “That’s my main goal: to try and honor that. And I’m going to do the best I can to do just that.”

hero

DEFENSE REPORT: 1B Albert Pujols made three errors in the fourth inning, including two on one play. He mishandled one routine bouncer. Then he bobbled another bouncer, for one error, and then swatted the ball into foul territory as he tried to shovel it to first, for a second error. Earlier in the game, Pujols showed some nice footwork to take a wide throw from 3B Ward with his foot on the bag.

Here's the contract valuation for Mike Trout's 12-year, $430 million extension with the Angels. If he's worth more than 44.5 WAR from 2021 to 2032, this contract is a win for Los Angeles. You have to believe that he will easily reach that total. pic.twitter.com/wM1QDVI44R

— Devan Fink (@DevanFink) March 19, 2019

Smart guy, I'd say--happy where's he playing, big payday but not obsessed with the market. Compared to the three big recent signings, he could have held out for a lot more, I'm sure, either in fewer years or more money.

all that's true, but i'm sure the angels are very happy that he's a smart guy

Definitely. And if they ever get out from under the Pujols contract, they can go get him some help.

that WAR above seems very conservative...am I missing something? A decline in age 30 season to 4.1? His avg seasonal WAR (discounting 40 gm rookie season) is 9.1

GIven this projection (and assuming he maintains current avg in 2019/20) he would end the contract 12th in WAR btw Musial and Hornsby

Or I guess this is just what he would minimally need to do in order to justify the $?

I’m more interested in what his surplus value is w that contract

Or I guess this is just what he would minimally need to do in order to justify the $?

― heinrich boll weevil (Hadrian VIII), Tuesday, March 19, 2019 3:50 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

correct

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/mike-trout-is-a-430-million-bargain/

The title is, if things go as expected, absolutely true, but it made me laugh anyway because every 538 title is constructed the same way, sports and politics both. They had that title ready to go no matter what he signed for.

trout's contract compared to others, with everything converted to 2019 dollars:

https://i.imgur.com/mbm4u8M.png
"I’ve included two Trout contracts below. The first is the $426.5 million figure representing the total value of the money owed to Trout; the second is Trout’s extension, assuming 5% inflation in the following two seasons."

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/mike-trout-leaves-money-on-the-table-again/

Those who call Mke Trout “boring” think the Karkrasians are celebrities. Trout cares about being the best, 3.9 or 4.0 to first, winning, being a great teammate, person, without need for celebrity or entourage.

— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) March 20, 2019

lolll

How exactly is the $10M/WAR number calculated? I always see these kinds of numbers but am never completely sure where they come from. Two win players are definitely not getting $20M/yr on the open market now. I'm assuming they look at every current player who signed via free agency and are calculating the average WAR they've put up over the length of their contract.

For example, take Albert Pujols' contract, he's making $24M/yr and he's averaged about 1.5 WAR/yr (I'm estimating) over the seven years of his contract, so that's $16M per win per year. Factor in all free agents in the same way, and you get to $10M/WAR.

If this is how it's done, I'm not sure I buy it. Is inflation taken into account? What about players who sign extensions that buy out their free agent years? Fewer big stars even reach free agency, and you could argue that the lesser players that do are increasingly overpaid, which makes WAR more expensive on the open market. etc.

leg cramp!

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/26383539/trout-suffers-leg-cramp-escapes-serious-injury

holy cow I missed that massive contract he signed, goof on him

"I got a good raspberry," he said with a laugh

michael

"But it's all good now. I'm fine. Other than that, I got a strawberry. That's it."

MICHAEL

WHY DO YOU KEEP CALLING IT DIFFERENT BERRIES

a raspberry is a Bronx cheer, he should know that

Trout just had one of the best series by anyone, ever. He was 6-for-11 with five HRs and six walks -- contributing to a 2.631 OPS, the third-highest by anyone in a four-game series in MLB history (min. 15 PA).

The highest ever was 3.111 by Babe Ruth in June of 1921 against the Tigers. He was 8-for-12 with six HRs and six walks in that series at the Polo Grounds. He also started and won a game on the mound in that series, striking out Ty Cobb.

The second-highest OPS ever was 2.850 by Mickey Mantle in July of 1962 against the A's, as he launched five HRs and walked six times.

christ

i watched most of the 2-HR game the other night, and like mookieproof i have no idea why anyone pitches to him given that lineup

AL player of the week for the first time since july 2015 (?!?)

that does not seem possible

TIE for #91, i repeat, TIE for #91

https://i.imgur.com/sA61B56.jpg
(tie) 91. Captain Beefheart - Frownland (1:39)
0.3672 points
5 votes

https://i.imgur.com/YqsqlKS.jpg
(tie) 91. Napalm Death - You Suffer (0:02)
0.3672 points
8 votes

the beefheart song is the first song on the countdown that i officially do not like

i have been getting into earlier beefheart recently, actually. but i do not understand what people are hearing in frownland

but beefheart wouldn't be beefheart if there weren't a bunch of people on the side going "i don't know what people are hearing in this", so i'm just playing the role

um

i am sorry

btw you all should check out this poll over here, it's great

Top 120 Songs Under 120 Seconds (ILM Poll #95)

I thought it was maybe a “trout” mask replica thing

Trout, Mike - replica jersey

he's so hot right now that he literally opened a wormhole in this thread

trout mask replica was my keeper league team name for a while, but nobody got it. i changed it to mike 'ehrman' trout.

this is my punishment for never getting around to voting

:-(

2019 injury roll/discussion

seems like it’s minor, thankfully

WAR is live on our site and (no surprise) Mike Trout leads the majors

His 1.8 WAR in 12 games would pro-rate to 24.3 WAR in the course of a full 162-game season pic.twitter.com/b2DrrKI6l4

— Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) April 10, 2019

Trout Neck Replica

Mike Trout Walk Rate by season since 2014:
2019 - 26.5%
2018 - 20.1%
2017 - 18.5%
2016 - 17.0%
2015 - 13.5%
2014 - 11.8%

Teams are getting smarter apparently.

— Daren Willman (@darenw) April 11, 2019

at this rate his 2030 season will feature four at-bats

As with Bonds, though, is there not a threshold where you're now walking the player too often?

well he's slugging .938 so far, so it doesn't quite make sense to walk him . . . but it's pretty close

if there's RISP i imagine a .938 looks very walkable!