Angels superstar Mike Trout reported to the team’s summer camp today, but the three-time American League MVP made clear that he’s still feeling conflicted about playing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Honestly, I still don’t feel comfortable with the baby coming,” Trout told reporters today on a Zoom call (link via USA Today’s Bob Nightengale). “There’s a lot of things on my mind. I’m trying to be the safest and most cautious way to get through the season. It’s going to be tough.”
Trout’s wife is currently pregnant with the couple’s first child, and the 28-year-old center fielder says that they’re “playing it by ear” with the baby due to be born in August. “I’ve got to keep Jess safe,” says Trout. “I’ve got to keep the baby safe.” He adds, too, that in the event of a positive test, he’d need to go at least 14 days without seeing his newborn child, which also weighs on his mind.
“We all want to play,” Trout continued. “It’s going to come down to how safe we are going to be. If there’s outbreak or something happens these next few weeks, we’ve got to reconsider.”
Trout is far from the only player in the game with this type of concern. Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman voiced similarly thoughtful concerns last week before officially opting out of the 2020 season earlier this week. Washington closer Sean Doolittle, whose wife is high-risk, has regularly voiced concerns and yesterday told Scott Abraham of ABC7 News that he’s “leaning toward playing” but is “not entirely” sure he’ll ultimately do so (Twitter link, with video).
To this point, Zimmerman, Joe Ross, Tyson Ross and Mike Leake are the four players who have opted out of playing the 2020 season amid public health concerns.
Now this might be the only thing that will stop an MLB season.
Strongly agreed. This season isn’t going to happen, period.
Great. Season confirmed as a go now.
People insisting that the season won’t happen are as silly as the ones saying it will. Not enough info at this time. It all depends on how baseball handles their lockdown, could go either way. best to take it a day at a time
At what point can we admit that everybody on Earth is handing covid by just making stuff up as they go…
“At what point can we admit that everybody on Earth is handing covid by just making stuff up as they go…”
…probably when people are willing to acknowledge that it’s new and we are learning as we go.
Most reasonable people err humbly on the side of caution when dealing with unknown variables.
Some people are doing that. Others are actually studying the thing and trying to learn as much as they as the train comes barrelling down on them.
Then don’t play. Simple enough.
Nope Yanks owner wants a season so baseball caters to them. Remember the tie goes to Jeter
Jeter is with the Marlins not Yankees
Yes, because if Trout sits out, the season will have no meaning. Get real!
Pretty sure there are other good players in baseball
I’m surprised he doesn’t opt out this year.
He’s already made bank and has a kid on the way. Plus, it’s not a gimme that he recovers 100% if by some chance he comes down with it.
Missing 60 games isn’t going to have a major effect on his bank account.
Being the highest paid player. It could send a cascade down the ranks of others opting out. We all know he’s the best baseball player currently, and if he says it’s a no go that holds weight to me but to each his own.
Then don’t play. It’s not like the Angels can win anything with the current team. Even in a joke of a shortened 60 game season.
@acarneglia if the super stars don’t want to play, I am pretty sure the soon to be unpaid minor leaguers would love to take their place to earn a few bucks. To bad the MLBPA would bulk at that, but it’s an option for owners in the harsh reality of things.
If Trout doesn’t play Angels are a good third place team
STOP IT PLEASE RIGHT NOW ASG BEING CANCELLED IS ENOUGH BAD NEWS FOR THIS WEEK
Considering the ASG was actually scheduled before the season was going to start and is a cramfest to get 60 games in by the end of September, cancellation of the game isn’t bad news and certainly doesn’t warrant all caps. In this season of complete uncertainly, the all star game not being played was a given.
If this is the worst news you’ve heard this week then I have to wonder where you live.
ASG being canceled is bad news? I feel for you if you get the real bad news.
At least we don’t have to hear “ back back back back back back back” this year!
Imagine thinking a worthless exhibition game deserves to be called “bad news” when millions of people are about to die at the hands of a govt run exclusively by morons. Your priorities are entirely out of wack. Look in the mirror, man.
Imagine being this much of a derranged anarchist. “Millions”. You’re absolutely insane and a troll.
Incorrect, you are the worst troll on this site by a million miles and have never said anything other than to belittle someone. Talk baseball or go away, you worthless racist. Lick boots somewhere else.
Don’t sell yourself short, you’re still quite an insufferable troll in your own right.
@strike four ….. yea they are ALL morons…. especially at the local city level.
Yes the Governors and Mayors of this country are ruining what once was a civil and upside economic country, its really a shame.. Semper Fi to my buddies on this great July Fourth that hopefully the socialist and commies will not take away
Hopefully their lives don’t get taken away from the Russian bounties on their heads. Maybe the “President” will do something between rounds of golf and Covid-19 rallies.
They are going to cancel the season before it actually gets started. Spring training will show that players opting out and others getting the virus
Who cares about the all star game?
FSF right! The all star game is a super fairy event. It is actually stupid how they go about it. The perfect All-Star game is letting the primary starters that were voted in play till the 7th inning and then in the 8th and 9th you put in your subs. Carry at least one player from each team to represent their city and fans cannot vote for more then two players from one team. Rosters consisting of 14 position players and 6 pitchers only. The starting pitchers from both sides stays in for at least 4 innings. 1st pitching relief stays in for at least 3 innings which takes care of 7 complete innings. So through 7 complete the both NL and AL would have used eight players each at positions and two pitchers. 11 players used per team through seven innings. Then the rest of the game (8th and 9th) you go back to traditional wild surpluses of changes. Play everyone you want, make changes as much as you feel.
@Sherlock
This is great news.
Apologies in advance but I find the all star game alongside the home run derby absolutely cringeworthy worthless and pointless. I can only hope they add a few dollars for charities. The idea that an exhibition game used to decide 4/3 home advantage in the WS is beyond an anachronism. Just name the best 9 players in each league. Some time after late June (because every season is decided by 30th June!) instead of – oooh – gotta have someone from each of the 15 teams each league…. And have this decide home advantage?
I’d like to have a bit of time travel & a beer with whoever thought two ASGs was a good idea in the 50s/60s…
Apart from that I’m really disappointed too….
CALL THE POLICE
There are 3 players who, if they decided to sit out, would start a major domino effect: Trout, Harper, and Scherzer (given their names, reps, and standing). If ant one of them decides the risk is too great and sits out, you will see a lot of players follow them.
And I don’t blame them. We shouldn’t be playing.
Two of those guys would be a huge loss for their teams. The other guy left Washington and they promptly won a championship.
It’s not the established stars who’ve already banked enough to live happily ever after. It’s those young studs like Judge, Alonso and Devers just to name a few that would likely put everything on pause.
I wouldn’t put Judge as a young stud, the dude is 28, you should’ve choose someone like Acuna or Soto instead of someone in the heart of their prime.
I was just thinking as examples stars that haven’t yet cashed in with even big arb numbers. Living in NY and following the Sox as I do, I chose one from each Ny club and Boston. I
The point
<———-
@tedtheodorelogan’s head
<———
Because the Nationals added an elite 3rd starter and solid 4th, something they did not have for much of Harpers time in DC. You should quit following baseball if you actually believe the ”Nats got better without” Harper nonsense.
The Nats didn’t have a good 3 or 4 in the rotation for “much” of Harpers time in Washington is just simply not true. Gio, Zimmerman each had at least 2 maybe 3 elite seasons each during Harpers tenure, with Max and Stras as the 1-2. If you look at there #’s they could easily be considered an “elite” #3/4. They also had solid campaigns from Roark, Fister, Hellickson were there as well behind Max, Stras, Zim and Gio. Making them all #4/5 starters which easily could have been #3s on half the league. So your argument that they didn’t have the rotation during Harpers tenure is absurd, they’ve literally had a top 5 rotation every year for the last 6-7 years.
Zimmerman was in the same rotation with Max and Strasburg for one year. In that year Harper put up one of the top 10 seasons of all time. The years they had a great rotation and failed, it was not because of Harper. Their rotation was terrible in 2018 beyond the top 2. Corbin is better than any #3 starter they had in this era. Gio Gonzalez was terrible in the playoffs and he is more of a reason they failed in October so much, not Harper. The Nats won the World Series because they fixed their rotation by making it not so top heavy. Not because Harper left. You seriously think if they replaced Eaton with Harper they would miss a beat?
I don’t have anything against Harper, he’s just not looking like a superstar anymore. More like a solid corner OFer that’s going to hit .800+OPS and 30 bombs. I wouldn’t say the Nats won BECAUSE Harper left, but obviously it didn’t hurt.
If Harper would have resigned in DC there’s no Corbin, who was instrumental in their playoff run. With both Harper and Corbin they still win obviously. Harper was more productive in every aspect to Eaton, who assumed Harper’s spot in RF.
Do not forget Rizzo benched Strasburg in 2012 to preserve innings. Another way of saying we are in the business for business and not in the business of winning.
Harper was a major distraction and a better without him
The Nats just got hot at the right time just like the Angels in 2002. It leads the team into a false sense of security thinking they finally have a team that contend the next few years for the WS. Instead of taking a step back and asking them selves are we really built to win a Championship maybe the next 4 or 5 years like the Giants did..
Harper doesn’t garner a fraction of the respect that Trout does and Scherer isn’t a ‘brand name’. I said it weeks ago- Trout isn’t playing till after the baby is born- at the soonest.
The effect on the season will hinge on how he positions his decision and how many others have or do decide the same thing. Plus what happens in the real world.
So far Trout is supporting MLB by reporting to Summer Camp. My guess is that he bails out before August. Can’t say I blame him and small hat tip for recognizing that his decision can affect many other people’s livelihoods.
Ted and that guy that left is a cancer to the team and an arrogant a-wipe. He can hit 30 homers and hit 250 and still people think he amazing. People just simply don’t think these days
i highly doubt the average player cares about the personal decisions of theree players simply because they are good at their jobs.
He literally wrote “(given their names, REPS, and standing)” did you get hit in the head again? lol cmon he literally covered why.
i did see that. my point is i dont think those things should have any affect on other players whose career sitiations and family situations are different. its not like baseball is some Mike Trout cult.
How much are they different.? I’m sure of the 1000 or so players involved there’s quite a few in the same boat as Trout. Newborns and young children and grand parents. Its because Trout us not on YOUR team it doesn’t mean as much.
If all the best players don’t play and encourage others not to play, then the season will finally fold like it should have done in March.
It’s not going to last into September anyway, it might not even get into next week. MLB handled this as bad as the President did.
Ok Hillary
Trout has had his payday. Most others have not. It’s easier to walk away when there is money in the bank. I am in the at risk age group, but don’t have the option to walk, as I need the job, and the paycheck. More of the players can relate to my situation (other than age), than can relate to Trout’s.
@strike four: I was enjoying your comments until you brought politics into it. Stop. This isn’t the place for that.
@88 good ol days …… he always does man. He can’t help himself. He’s like a child you can’t take anywhere that sells candy because he will run up and down the aisles stuffing his pockets hysterically. Then he runs out the door and never pays lol.
You mean the Governors and Mayors not the Pres. get real stop listening to the fake news, LOL
Seeing Harper’s comment on Ian Desmond’s post made me think he’s not going to be far behind him.
trout’s havin a baby thats why he isnt playing
harper=tiki barber effect. crybaby leaves, team wins championship year later
@bykoric
We shouldn’t be playing.
No, and we shouldn’t go to work, or church, or the beach. Sit down and shut up!
I saw the Tweet, and the way he said it, sounds like he wants to play, but I bet if ANY Angels players gets Covid, he might sit out a few weeks. Baseball news is on fire this morning!
Trout deserves to do whatever he feels he should do. I only wish I was in a position to make those types of decisions. No one wants to say why or what if with this disease.
Every player wants to play, obviously.
It’s hard to digest the information that you can die or cause others to die by playing. This is where he’s going.
The season is so short if any player gets it, they are done for the year.
Well Joe Maddon said today that 9-10 Angels players didn’t participate in workouts this week but wouldn’t say why so I’m assuming at least one player has already tested positive.
Alt2tab seriously? Wow, you know what, this season is NOT happening. We’re done.
No thats not why. Some are arriving late
Some are, but those aren’t the players Maddon was referring to. He said 9-10 players weren’t participating but that he wasn’t allowed to say why. What else could that mean?
You are misquoting the statement. It was 9 OR 10 and NOT 9/10.
usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nighte…
Ya that’s not what I said. The en dash reads as “9 to 10 players,” not 9 out of 10.
That IS what you said. I can’t find it anymore but I know you are a liar now and have no intellectual integrity.
Lol you’re a moron. This is the only spot I’ve commented on this post and I never said that
You forgot Ian Desmond even if he hasn’t played well in a while
It sounds like Mike should step down. Nobody should hate him for doing so, and if they claim to then that’s their loss. There’s almost more weight on his shoulders than anybody else in the MLB.
FINALLY!!! WE HAVE FOUND COMMON SENSE!!! Thank you, colon!
Watch the Angels win the WS without him. Goat. LOL
Angels will easily be battling for last place with Seattle that awful rotation and no Trout.
the zombie apocalypse will happen first lol
The zombies are already protesting and rioting in the streets….wait that would be an insult to zombies
Without Trout the Angels come in third at best
Agreed
There is no weight on Mike or his shoulders lol. We don’t expect him to make the playoffs anyways lol
Could care less about the ASG as instead of being the highly competitive battle for league superiority long ago, it is just a meaningless exhibition and getting everyone in.
just don’t play Mike. Don’t make it sound like a massive decision. ya in ya out,? Either way MLB will be fine
Skip the year and get ready for 2021. Relatively speaking, he doesn’t need the money from this season. He’s already getting the biggest salary cut and he has a lot going on at home.
Anyone player expecting a baby should not play. He’s gonna leave for a week anyway for his son/daughter
You know how many people have had babies during this pandemic and still have to go to work?
He has a job. If he wants to get paid, he’ll do his job. Luckily for him, he’s rich enough he can afford not to work if that’s what he chooses. Either way, it’s a choice that only he can make.
“You know how many people have had babies during this pandemic and still have to go to work?”
I don’t know this info, please inform me. I thought no one had a job anymore?
Exactly. There are a lot of people, pandemic or not, that have to travel for their jobs and are away from their family for weeks at a time. Truck drivers might be home for a week when the baby is born but back on the road the next week. Same with flight crews, oil rig workers, merchant marines/commercial fishermen….lots of jobs. As you say, he is lucky that he has the option and can easily afford to decide to take an extended leave from his job and not worry about not being paid. If he plays, he plays. If he opts out, so be it, the games will go on.
All Trout has are good decisions. Real people have harder decisions.
I get you don’t emphasize with him, but if decides not to play, it’s a big deal for baseball.
Even bigger deal for you…… you must be crushed right now. The man the myth and the legend may not play smh. I can see you through the screen jumping up and down with the tears rolling down your face. It reminds you of the time your parents told you that you couldn’t have that BB gun for Christmas. “Ralphie …… you’ll shoot your eye out”.
Mlb health rumors at it again. No one cares if trout can’t or WONT play. First of all he play. Second the angels are so horrible this will only make them even worse. Good job mlbhr. MLB health rumors. The biggest baddest site for scared players to do and say nothing. Nada. Zilch
CHEATERS!
“I don’t care, therefore no one cares.”
Fun take.
Feel free to skip health-related posts if you want — or to just stop reading entirely. Good luck finding any notable baseball site out there that *isn’t* going to cover the best player on the planet saying he’s “not comfortable” and “playing it by ear,” etc.
@Steve Adams
I’m real curious why you bother replying to someone who isn’t going to listen, when you yourself have the power to just IP ban obvious racists and trolls.
I know I do plenty of trollish stuff around here, but honestly its due to the racists on here now – I really just cant stand racists and your site has been overrun with them over the last 12 months. I have made quite a few posts that I’m surprised I haven’t been banned over, so that leads me to this question: would you rather have racists posting utter crud in here so you get more clicks/money? Isn’t that why I haven’t been banned? I draw a crowd sometimes and that alone helps you get paid, so I can post whatever as long as it’s not a banned word?
Speak on that, please….
You’d be one of the first people banned based on your past rhetoric of hoping certain posters get Covid or die. You’d be like the Harvard student, losing your privileges on this site.
You draw a crowd of flies. People only feel compelled to shut you down in the moment and never think twice about you the moment they leave this website.
I think your ego is infected Strike Four. It is massively swollen, and it should not be.
Remember when baseball players were brash and spoke their minds? Think of it like that.
Trust me, I know what I’m doing.
Nice thought. I hope some people get a disease and die. Like a previous posting stated You have a massive ego. And you along with a few others spend waaaay to much time on this site. I’m guessing your either a Red Sox or Yankee fan. One that thinks because you’re a fan of that particular team you have superior knowledge. Plus the fact you’re butt hurt Trout is not on your team.
And don’t come back at me your glad Trout isn’t on your team.
Trout is the GOAT. Trout doesn’t need me or any other fan to stick up for him. He leads by example. He’s not a big mouth. He doesn’t get in trouble with the law. He doesn’t do PEDS. He’s a better person than he is a ballplayer.
Are you jealous that your posts aren’t worthy of Mr. Adams comments?
FRAUD ALERT
“I don’t “follow threads” like others do. I drop my knowledge and bounce.
Complete lie…….. You constantly follow up on your silly little arguments with me all the time DAYS after your still trying to get the last word – It runs like clockwork with you every time
Its cool you think your so great but dont lie about man….. If your so great……
I don’t “follow threads” like others do. I drop my knowledge and bounce.
Then Be great !!
Dont lie about it though man, it just makes it look insincere when the truth comes out!
So sad a grown man has to lie about things on the internet to feel his worth.
S4, you remind me of a guy I knew in college from NYC at UW Madison —
all he could talk about was how much he hated the Yankees, and his love for bootleg Grateful Dead cassette tapes. We all tuned him out.
“Trollish” comment games do not help the site, they are just boring and sad.
@strikefour….. you should be banned for talking nothing but politics, they have posts for that stuff you know. Go check them out….. permanently!
@halo honk….. yeah he’s definitely not the goat….. less than a .100 hitter in the postseason. The same postseason he can’t seem to even make. The royals shut him down that year lol. The almighty royals laid the goat to rest. I get it he ain’t had enough chances. . Forget the fact 3-4 Players put up better numbers up for same amount of years he’s played.
The ONLY stat that says that He’s GOING to be the goat (not there yet) is war. Not hits, not batting average, not home runs, not Rbi, not avg with risp, not total bases, not runs, not doubles…… JUST war. That’s it. Have fun viewing your one stat as the end all be all. I’ll have fun watching him sit in the playoffs til you clowns get pitching. All he does is walks anyways.
Funny how one stat says all the others do not matter. You can have better numbers in all those things and play better defense at your position. But if you do not play center you don’t have that war.
So you are basically wishing all of BLM and Antifa die of covid? That is extremely messed up dude, they may be terrorists but to infer that the penalty should be death? Grow up dude.
What a joke you are sir. I never once wrote I don’t care. No wonder you people are so angry. Putting quotations around something that was never written then writing about said fake quotes. Writing no one cares is a general phrase used to stoke discussion. Not to put fake quotes out then critique your own fake quote
I really get annoyed at people that use the “no one, all or everyone” argument. It’s a false argument at best. You should be able to do better than that.
No one cares? Sounds like a jealous Astro fan whose team has to cheat to win.
Yeah line up with
Rendon
Trout
Ohtani
Fletcher
Simba
Pujols
Is terrible.?Somebody use your head to bang trash cans?
Try selling crazy somewhere else. MLBTR is all stocked up.
Hold on lemme make sure I have this all written down correctly … baseball fans don’t care whether the greatest player of his generation will play? mmkay
for sixty games in the twilight zone year of sports and overall life, no. no, i really do not think most baseball will be overly worried that trout may not play the shortened season. and yet you still miss my first thought. he will play.
I care.
i find it as the last chance rallying call, and coming from the biggest player to quite possibly ever play the game. yes. i stand by that all day every day any day. it may help stop the season and get more players to opt out or just say they might. i dont think it will do any of that and i think he plays
“Tell us when and where”
Said before the second wave started hitting…..
There’s been speculation of a second wave for months. He still said it. Numbers are going to go up with more tests, yet death rates continue to drop
Speculation is a little different than reality.
And the reality is that the second wave hasn’t hit yet. We’re still in the first wave.
We’re not even out of the first wave actually…
Seriously, you need to examine what it is that leads you to make a comment like this. The agreement gives players the right to elect not to play. The man has a wife and newborn and surely he’d like to be with them. What is the matter with you?
There is no one in the game today with more credibility than Trout. NO ONE. Him not playing would be the best possible thing for the players, the best possible thing for the sport and the best possible thing for the situation regarding the pandemic. It would expose the monumental joke that the owners, the union, and Manfred have made of the sport and the situation. The best outcome would be that this bad SNL sketch of a season would so completely humiliate that powers that be, that the Manfred and Clark end up fired, and the owners and players are FORCED to deal with the social disaster this sport has become.
honestly, its fine if Trout doesn’t play in my opinion, but the way he has dealt with ot has only made me like him less and less. the fact that he went on the offensive about saleries early really did it for me. and despite being the best player in baseball, he’s been distant and reserved, while the clearly inferior Harper has been more of a face of the game. Trout is allowed to be the way he is, dont get me wrong, but he just appears a lot more distant then the average sports star and really doesnt need to be pushed as the face of the game in spite of being its best player.
why wouldn’t you like trout? he’s the face of the mlb rn
its not that i dislike him its just that his complete distance is offputting. that and im just generally someone who prefers to be a fan of more off beat players. it’s like my general policy of really only posting more thought provoking comments rather than ones that conform with the majority. if my opinion is common i feel there is no real need to say it. I certainly respect him for his talents, but i feel less of a need to be specfiically a fan of his when so many others are.
I agree, Trout having the personality of a bowl of pudding has actually hurt the game and society in general. He has so much power available to him if he wants it, but he’d rather be quiet, play and go home, which is the absolute worst kind of elite player to be, just the opposite to people like Steph Curry, who more elite athletes need to model themselves on. Have fun, be serious only while the ball is in play, use your money and face for good, not for….nothing.
Because he quiet, doesn’t do anything wrong, signs autographs before every game, he’s has the personality of pudding.
You have the personality of a loud mouth arrogant jerk.
He has character, you don’t.
Yes, he truly does have no personality. Stop being a homer for 5 seconds and view the situation objectively.
Signing autographs is more important than speaking out about social issues or even MLB issues, to you? Only a homer would think this. Free the shackles of your mind that you are currently being bound by. Trout’s the best player ever, but is completely useless at anything other than playing the game. Harper isn’t as good, but is objectively more valuable to MLB than Trout is.
Personally I don’t care what ANY professional player says about social issues. In fact I wish some of them would keep their mouths shut.
They create more problems and divide. Your being paid to play. Trout has a right to speak his mind about playing.Its a health issue not a issue about BML or who should be POTUS in November.. He’s has a baby coming.Lets stop piling on Trout because he’s not on your team.
That’s a really unfortunate take. Athletes don’t have to “shut up and play” just because you are uncomfortable with what some of them have to say. And calling out racism, for example, as quite a few athletes have done, does not “create more problems and divide.” I’ve found that “that’s divisive” is often code for “that makes me uncomfortable because it makes me confront my privilege.”
@halo honk See nobody can say anything critical. All of a sudden we are all just jealous he’s not on your team. It’s like calling a person who sleeps around a scum bag. Then that persons friends say, your just jealous you haven’t slept with them. Smh. Just admit he is a slouch when it comes to the promotion of the game and move on.
Hurt society in general—??
Grow up my man…….
Maybe its on you to be a role model for your kids not Trout
When you make $40M a year and have your face plastered everywhere, why yes, it absolutely is on him to be a role model. What kind of sick mind would think otherwise?
Ok so Kyrie Irving is your sons role model…..Good Luck with that buddy
Next up, social equality lessons from Mark Zuckerberg right, then maybe he can learn Spanish from Jeff Bezos after –
Take the day off my man, you’ve been spanked by everyone from admin to the custodian in here today
that’s just trout being trout. remember when manfraud blamed him for not pushing the game to more people, thousands upon thousands came out expressing the way trout touched their lives? that’s trout. you ain’t gonna change him!
Imagine relying on Manfred to be a judge of character.
I might stop laughing about that in a week or two.
and im not one to tell him.not to be the way he is, it just amazes me that baseball just so happens to have a best player who is not only distant, but so distant as Trout is. “like less” really isnt the correct way to put it, rather it just seems odd and puts me off.
Stop giving yourself a thumbs up after every post. Its pretty obvious. You no nothing about Trout
um, im using the app you fool. i cant thumbs up from the app.
I gave you a thumbs up
@darkside I could not agree more….. I don’t wanna be a troll this post. I want to see a PR campaign from him and the mlb. You are the best current player and you can walk up fifth avenue and 3/4 of the people do not even know who you are. More people would ask Steven Segal for his autograph and actually know who he is. It’s selfish behavior in my honest non trolling opinion.
I don’t want to see you on subway commercials Mike(that pay you since that’s what it’s all about to you). I wanna see you promote the game on ESPN more, do more interviews, and help the image of baseball. That means make a series of commercials with other big stars telling people to watch baseball, even if it doesn’t pay much.
Instead, he is a negative Nancy(not a political jab strikefour so shut it)or whines about the salaries.
@dark side your going to have to move now.. lol you invoked the great ones name the mob will come burn your house down now. You don’t know what you got into. Every time I have done it the backlash was swift. It’s literally against the law to say a bad word of him.
i dodged a bullet when he resigned in LA. if he came to Philly and i said that they’d string me up for sure.
No animosity if anyone, let alone an athlete would decide to not work and stay home for health concerns over Covid-19. Many of us do not have the luxury of really having that option. Many of us need the paycheck to support our families and do not have the ability to forgo being paid for an extended period of time. Wish I did not have to go into work every day at this point in time.
If you are living paycheck to paycheck, this is a gut wrenching choice.
If not, it should be the easiest choice ever.
You can never get those days back.
I agree, it’s like choosing witch 100,000 dollar car you have to park in the driveway instead of the garage.
If the players are going to start opting out (and we see a domino effect), then why the heck did we waste months of bickering and negotiations to play?
only 4 guys on ML rosters have done so so far and they’ve had plenty of time to think about it. the fact that its just beem a few so far suggests there will be no domino affect.
I thought it was name a time and place? What happened Mikey?
IF I was a multi-millionaire player and spent money wisely 60 game payout might not be all that important to me either.
That 60 game payout for Trout equals $12-$13M. While he’s owed a lot more than this going forward, it could be a tough decision for him, especially with the likelihood of a work stoppage on the near horizon.
You forgot Ian Desmond
Two out of the four players opting out have the last name Ross. What are the odds that out of 1000 players, the 4 that have decided not to play- includes 2 Ross’s.
Whoaaa man trippy
You realize that the players are being tested for the first time after coming from all over the country, right? Once they get into a routine, are tested every other day and keep away from other people it will be better. Not one of these players that has gotten it has even become “sick”, it’s a sucky situation, but we all go to work under “less safe” conditions. So when people say “shut it down”, how would you like it if they shut your job down?
you try it on!
With or without him or anyone else, the show will go on.
For every player diagnosed with COVID, there are 10 more ready to step in and take his place.
The regular season is mostly meaningless, but the postseason… there is a title at stake, and that championship is still a championship like any other.
Trout is the face of MLB in my opinion. I don’t resent him from being distant, even if he is, which I don’t see that. Watching him play baseball, reminds me how I wish all players approached the game.
Trout isn’t distant. Go to games. See how he interacts with fans. He exudes class.
He doesn’t self promote.
Griffey was distant, Griffey was a tough interview, but he self promoted. Trout is none of those things.
I don’t know any player who is has more class than Trout.
Griffey was only distant to the NYC media, because he hated the Yankees and the city of New York due to the racism he experienced as a youngster at Yankee stadium tagging along with his dad, a literal Yankees player.
No.. Griffey often put off writers. And Griffey didn’t sign autographs every day. He didn’t play catch with fans.
Griffey wasn’t a bad guy, but as far as character was concerned, he couldn’t come close Trout.
But personality trumps character. Got it. And you have personality.
No Griffey was very aloof everywhere.
But Halo…Does Trout turn his cap around in batting practice??
Couldnt agree more Trout is a Saint and role model every step of the way and I hate the Angels
Trout and Griffey had very different personalities.
You don’t know a player who does ANYTHING better than trout. No body can perform algebra better, jay walk better, put out a fire better, have a child better, or walk to first base better. How much does real estate cost on his balls?
Like Stan Musial was a public person obsessed with his “personna’. Or Al Kaline…
So Trout would rather watch an Eagles game, and Mookie would rather be bowling. Frankie Lindor lights up a room wherever he goes, and oh, he’s a pretty good player. He can’t be the “face” of MLB?
He can’t because he plays on a team America is ashamed of.
Cant blame Trout, I live in the same city as him and we are raging outta control right now with the virus
Raging out of control? They say the same here in my city in AZ. The thing is….where is it? How many people do you actually know that isn’t elderly or already sick that has or had a problem with covid? Do you blindly follow our worthless government and totally garbage media’s word for it, or do you actually see it? Not being a jerk, I am seriously asking this to EVERYONE.
4o people at my girlfriends work got it, one is in a severe coma right now
Mike trout eats at my girlfriends work all the time, golfs with the manager
I could go on and on but I think thats enough for now
I follow my own eyes
How old is the one in a coma? Were there any pre-existing conditions? I too follow my own eyes and rely on real people not the biased media to reach conclusions which is why I ask everyone on all sites about this. I have friends and family all over the country and I am kind of doing my own research because the whole virus thing looks extremely politically driven and not nearly as deadly as they want us to think. If you are worried wear a mask and stay home, God bless
What a rich pampered baby
trout’s baby will be. you have a problem with that?
mike, i see no solar panels on your roof. help the environment!
Perfect example of a player who knows he’s needs to err on the side of caution and skip this season. Also a perfect example of the pressure a superstar faces to play. Hopefully the Angels recognize this and support Trout in the right way.
I feel like the players, owners, etc have been living in this bubble for the last few months. Just frustrating when millions of Americans simply have to go to work and put themselves and their families at risk – otherwise they won’t be able to eat or pay the bills. Many other have lost their income and are facing uncertain futures. And each of us, unless we’re living in a bunker, is at risk every time we go to the grocery store. Really makes these players sound like they’re whining when the fans are the last people they should complain to.
Mike, You’re already a member of the greatest all-time team in major league baseball. You’re also a family man and the kind of person others respect. No one with any intelligence is going to fault you for staying home with you family this season. Your decision may also influence other athletes to do the right thing. God bless you and yours, and everyone being forced to make difficult decisions during this trying and confusing time. And God bless America – always!
amen!
It’s easy to say when you’re still drawing that massive check. I would bet my life savings that this man still plays
Let Jo Adell and Brandon Marsh fill in
The number of opt-outs in the days ahead will be staggering. Just pull the plug on the season.
why would it pick up so quickly from the rate they’ve came at so far?
The soon to be newborn is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more important than the game.
Sit it out, Mike.
Tell that to the person working at the grocery store who doesn’t have that luxury. Most people that were called back to work are being ordered to wear masks all day which is more likely to have health concerns than this virus, and most masks can’t stop virus particles anyway even if they were worn correctly. So go to work in a crowded store and be exposed…or wear an unhealthy mask all day.
I love Mike Trout but he’s not helping baseball by straddling the fence like this. He either needs to opt out or decide to spend some time away from his wife and eventual newborn so he can earn another $12-$13M for his family this year. I have no right to say what the best choice is for him and his family, but he really needs to make a decision rather than spread FUD across the league. If the players truly want to play, they need to work with the league and each other to make this as safe as possible and do their best to stay positive throughout this ordeal. The press loves to latch on to negative stories like this; best thing to do is not to feed the monster.
It’s a tough decision but put yourself in his shoes. Your job finally gives you the green light to go back to work but with that comes a handful of possible negative scenarios. What’s the positive part about it? That you get paid some money and make fans happy? Mike Trout doesn’t need any more money this year. I don’t think he would be being selfish by opting out. I feel for him 100%.
I respect Mike Trout for being honest. He’s a human being, not a machine. He’s intelligent, thoughtful and being responsible. He’s aware of not only the danger, but also the image that athletes portray.
Kudos, Mr. Trout.
I think they should cancel the season. I get that everyone misses baseball, but we still don’t know the long term effects of this disease. All we know is that it’s easy to catch the more people you’re around and being around a bunch of baseball players is a perfect recipe for outbreak. Despite all the social distancing, statistically there are going to be multiple outbreaks, no matter what precautions are taken. C’mon 2021.
Trout Out = Bregman MVP
Matt Chapman will be better than Alex Bregman starting from this season forward.
This whole Covid is ruining the game and 60 games is short and no fans I only like the DH rule I’m both American and National league that’s is other than that this is almost as worse as the 1994 baseball strike.
To anyone who thinks they should cancel the season… WHY?
What hat in the ring do you have? Personally, once it gets cold and we’re basically shut in for the fall and winter, watching postseason baseball during the middle of a pandemic sounds really good and memorable to me.
And from the perspective of MLB… this season will be an opportunity for the league to do something it hasn’t been able to do for a long time… they’ll be able to pick up a new generation of fans because the whole world has basically become couch potatoes and everyone is craving live entertainment. And, MLB has a real shot at successfully marketing their largely unknown star players. We all know hardly anyone outside of baseball even knows of Mike Trout or Bryce Harper or any other of baseball’s biggest names.
No one should be whining about them playing baseball.
It’s going to take a lot more than a few dozen players and staff testing positive to undo this season… there are billions of dollars contractually guaranteed at stake here that no one wants to walk away from.
And, as in every sport, when one player goes down with injury (or COVID in this case), the door is open for an unknown player to make himself a household name.
This pandemic shall pass eventually. We will look back on this unforgettable time in this country and it will be easy to remember all the horrific things that have been going on, hopefully, baseball can give us something great to remember about it.
It’s his money, so it’s his call, but unless he or his wife have some sort of autoimmune issue or respiratory issue, the odds of them getting hospitalized are small and their odds of dying are remote, especially as he’s a top athlete in the prime of his life and she looks fit, too. I understand about not seeing his kid for two weeks – that would suck – but I don’t know how you explain to them in a few years, “Well, I could have made an additional $13.3M that would go into my will for you, but I gave it up over a relatively small chance of not seeing you for two weeks.” I know they won’t be hurting, but that seems like incredibly expensive insurance, especially since there’s no guarantee he can avoid Covid even if he doesn’t play. Better chance to avoid it, sure, but not 100%.
I’m sure Trout has a little endorsement money coming in. He’s not going to miss 13mil before taxes, which would be significant since he’d be playing most of this seasons games in CA.
Trout should sit. Family comes first. On the brightside, we’ll get a good look at Adell and maybe Marsh
Then just stay home and quit crying buddy!
It’ll be interesting to see how players react when/if a teammate comes down with it and has a hard time recovering.
Players who already have made money have an incentive to call it a year.
I could see younger players opting out as well to protect future earnings. Elite athletes can’t afford lingering effects, like lung function, that wouldn’t be a big deal to the rest of us.
It is so sad how uneducated they are about this. The odds of ANY of these young athletes getting seriously ill are almost zero. They are WAY more likely to suffer an injury in a game or in traffic than from this virus. Nearly everyone is eventually going to get a positive test at this point, it just has to run its course now because its too late to fight it. Masks NEVER were the answer, and they never were. They weren’t the answer in 1918, and not now. As far as Mike’s newborn, understandably he wants to take all precautions, but young children are the most resilient of all towards covid, the evidence has repeatedly shown that. There really is no reason to even have schools closed at all if you look at nearly all studies. Too much political bs, but when the media drives it down our throat 24 hours a day, it must be true…right?
Not necessarily. Go read about the Cubs’ pitching coach. He’s 38, had coronavirus for over 30 days, said it was the worst experience of his life.
Yeah, I did read about that. He got the pneumonia part of it, which is what takes the weaker/elderly/sickly people out which is roughly about 0.5 % of cases. He survived and told his story which basically reinforces the fact that no matter how many precautions you take, you just can’t run from nature. I am glad he is getting better, I have had pneumonia as recently as 2012, and I can tell you I wasn’t sure I would make it either. I honestly get it that NOBODY want to get sick, but allowing all this extra government control and media spreading panic is BS
Oh and one more thing. If anyone dies from pneumonia or the flu, you can absolutely be certain that they have been labeling those deaths as covid deaths.