The Los Angeles Angels are off to a 2-0 start, and one of the reasons this is happening isn't hard to figure out.
The Los Angeles Angels are 2-0 for the first time since 2007, and it’s not hard to figure out why. The pitching’s been exceptional, and center fielder Mike Trout is back to doing Mike Trout things.
That means adding his name to the record books in new ways. Trout’s second home run of the season made him just the fifth player in franchise history to homer in the first two games of the season, as he joined Chili Davis (1996), Tim Salmon (’95), Brian Downing (’82) and Joe Rudi (’80), according to a report from Rhett Bollinger of MLB .com.
At the major league level, Trout became the only the second player in big league history to homer and reach base safely at least four times in the first two games of a season since Amos Otis did it in 1977 with the Royals, Bollinger added.
What matters most to Trout and manager Kurt Suzuki, though, is the 2-0 part.
“I saw that,” Trout said. “It’s a good start to the year. The last two games have been great team wins from everybody. Everybody's contributing. Pitching staff is making pitches, and then timely hitting.”
It’s impossible to know how long Trout’s surprising renaissance will last, but it’s easy for Suzuki to see why it’s happening.
“He’s been great,” said manager Kurt Suzuki. “Just watching him at the plate, he’s comfortable and confident. He’s in a good place right now.”
Trout isn’t just showing out when he’s hitting home runs, either. His second hit of last night’s 6-2 win against the Houston Astros came on a hard-hit grounder that went off shortstop Jeremy Pena’s glove and into left field, and Trout hit a speed of 29.3 mph while legging out the hit, once again almost hitting the 30 mph mark that’s considered elite.
“It feels good,” Trout said. “I’m just staying on top of everything. But I feel a lot better.”
Trout’s homer last night came off Houston starter Mike Burrows, and it his 109.7 off the bat and traveled just over 400 feet. Trout credits new hitting coaches Brady Anderson, Derek Florko and John Mabry with helping him recapture his old swing, but it’s hard for hitting coaches to go wrong when you have the talent to work with that comes with a healthy Mike Trout.
This isn’t just a great Angels story, either—it’s a fantastic baseball story to see Trout performing at an elite level once again. Yes, it’s only two games, but it’s still been fun to watch.