ESPN MLB Insider Doesn't Think Mike Trout Injury Will Cause Angels to Trade Shohei Ohtani
The Los Angeles Angels received devastating news on Tuesday as it was announced that star outfielder Mike Trout is going on the injured list with a hamate fracture.
While Trout's official timeline hasn't been announced yet, MLBTraderumors compiled some instances of hamate fractures and determined that the injury will cost Trout at least six-to-eight weeks of action.
At the time of this posting, the Angels are 45-42 and in third place in the American League West. They also trail in the wild card race by two games. While the Angels could of course rise up and play well without Trout, they could also begin to fold, which would raise questions about how they should handle superstar Shohei Ohtani as the trade deadline approaches.
Ohtani is in the final year of contract with the Angels and destined for free agency, so if the Angels are to falter without Trout, they could move Ohtani and look for some value.
ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney spoke on ESPN Radio on Tuesday morning and said that despite the Trout injury, he doesn't think the Angels will move off Ohtani.
Now, he made the comments before the injury diagnosis was given on Trout, but here are his comments, which account for the possibility of a lengthy Trout absence.
"...it's going to raise the question 'will this compel the Angels to consider trading Ohtani during the course of the year and get value in return?' I just don't know if Arte (Moreno) wants to be the guy that delivers this generation's Babe Ruth out of town. My guess is they're going to keep him one way or the other."
Ohtani is having an unreal season for the Angels and would certainly command a good return on the trade market. It's an unenviable position for Halos management because they are also trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
Ohtani is hitting .303 with a league-leading 31 homers.
Trout had also gotten hot of late. He's hitting .263 with 18 homers and 44 RBI.
The Angels play the Padres on Tuesday night at 6:40 p.m. ET.
Olney is a frequent contributor to ESPN Radio programming. ESPN's morning show airs from 6-10 p.m. ET and can be streamed here.
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