Trout still finding new ways to make history after nearly 1,800 MLB games

WEST SACRAMENTO -- As an avid card collector, Angels superstar Mike Trout knows what it means to complete a set.

Trout did just that with a solo shot in Wednesday’s 7-3 loss to the Athletics on Wednesday, as it was his first career blast at Sutter Health Park, giving him a homer in all 15 active American League stadiums. He’s now gone deep in 31 ballparks, including 26 active ones -- the only venues he’s missing are Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park (eight games), Chicago’s Wrigley Field (eight), Pittsburgh’s PNC Park (six) and Atlanta’s Truist Park (three).

“It seems like every time we played here I'd be banged up,” Trout said. “I didn't get to play against them earlier in the season when I had the hamstring [strain]. But we’ve got four more games left, so try to finish strong going into the offseason.”

Additionally, Trout made history, as he now has 44 career homers against the A’s, the most by an opponent since the franchise moved to California in 1968. The three-time AL MVP and 12-time All-Star passed Alex Rodriguez and Rafael Palmeiro, who both hit 43 homers against the A’s.

Trout, who served as designated hitter for a fourth straight game, is also just one away from playing in 140 games in a season for the first time since 2018. The 35-year-old has also played 109 games in center field, but is likely to serve as DH in three of the last four games in Seattle. The last time he appeared in more than 100 games in center was in ’22.

“It's good,” Trout said. “It’s reassurance that I still can do it. The last few years have been tough. The routine and the plan we had with the staff and the strength guys, we put it together and stuck with it. And so getting to 140 is pretty awesome.”

It’s encouraging that Trout was able to get through the season healthy, as the only extended time he missed was 17 games with a right hamstring strain suffered in mid-June. Otherwise, he’s been a steady presence in the lineup and has slashed .247/.385/.430 with 22 homers, 26 doubles, 11 stolen bases, 85 runs and 54 RBIs in 139 games.

“It’s a huge thing,” manager Kurt Suzuki said of Trout’s availability. “It’s been 15 years in the big leagues and he's accomplished what he has in his career, and he's still out here every single day. He's doing early work, he's hitting early on the field. And having the younger players watch how he goes about his business, they’re lucky.”

Trout, who also went 3-for-4 on Tuesday, is looking to finish the year strong, much like he did last season when he hit five homers over his final seven games. He’s been better recently, slashing .310/.467/.500 with two homers, five doubles, four RBIs and 14 walks over his last 17 games.

Trout’s homer on Wednesday came in the fourth inning off lefty Jeffrey Springs to get the Angels on the board. Trout worked a 3-1 count and clobbered a changeup over the left-field fence for his 22nd homer of the year. Vaughn Grissom followed with a solo shot of his own to give the Angels back-to-back blasts.

“The last few days I’ve been feeling better,” Trout said. “I’m just trying to finish strong.”

The Angels were in an early hole, however, as rookie Walbert Ureña had an uncharacteristically shaky final start of the year. He gave up four runs in the first, including a three-run homer to Donovan Walton that left the bat at only 89.8 mph.

“Not the way that we wanted to finish, but I gave up an 89 mph home run, so there’s not much you can do about that,” Ureña said. “I’m just glad because I finished my season healthy and put up better numbers than what I thought.”

He went four innings, giving up five runs on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts. But he still put together an unlikely and impressive rookie season, posting a 2.97 ERA with 142 strikeouts and 68 walks in 148 1/3 innings, giving the Angels optimism for the future. His strikeout total is the fourth highest by a rookie in club history and the second highest for a first-year Angels player, behind only Bo Belinsky’s 145 in 1962.

“I don't get why they're not talking more about Rookie of the Year,” Trout said of Ureña. “Opposing players tell me he has the nastiest stuff that they've seen. When he’s on, it’s tough to hit, and I know it just from seeing his stuff from center field.”