SAN DIEGO — The Angels suffered a major blow Tuesday when superstar center fielder Mike Trout was placed on the 15-day injured list with a fractured left hamstring.
Trout, a three-time AL MVP and 11-time All-Star, suffered a wrist injury Monday when he hit a return ball while facing Padres right-hander Nick Martinez in the eighth inning at Petco Park. Trout is expected to be out for about four to eight weeks, meaning he’ll be out at least through early August and into September.
Trout said he has several players. He is still getting a second opinion to determine if he needs surgery, but that is considered a possibility.
“I knew it wasn’t good,” Trout said. “It’s a weird thing. I’ve approached a lot of guys who’ve had surgery or injuries before. Some guys come back in four weeks. Some guys take longer. We’ll see how it goes.”
Outfielder Joe Adel and right-hander Gerardo Reyes were recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake. Right-hander Victor Mederos was optioned to Double-A Rocket City. The Angels now have an outfield combination of Taylor Ward, Hunter Renfroe, Mickey Moniak and Adel.
“I think everybody out there knows there are going to be bumps in the road,” Angels manager Phil Nevin said. No one will feel sorry for us. There is no reason for us to do the same.
Trout, who was named an All-Star for the 11th time and a starter for the 10th straight year on Thursday, was hot at the plate. Trout, who was voted the starter, will miss his third straight All-Star Game with the injury.
“It’s tough,” Trout said. “I was really looking forward to it. It’s frustrating.
The 31-year-old has a slash line of .333/.438/.648 with four homers, three doubles and seven RBIs over his past 15 games. Trout is slashing .263/.369/.493 with 18 homers, 14 doubles and 44 RBIs in 81 games this season. His OPS of .862 is a step down from his otherworldly career OPS of .994, but he worked to adjust his mechanics in mid-June and looked like his old self.
Trout said he was told by the training staff there was nothing he could have done to prevent the injury — an unfortunate injury that occurred with one swing of the bat.
“Looking back, I wasn’t sore or anything like that,” Trout said. “I felt really sore and weird. Talking to the other guys, it’s basically the same thing for them. It’s frustrating because my body feels good. I had a routine, I was sticking to it, and this weird thing was happening. But at least it wasn’t crazy intense or season-ending.
Adel, 24, will now get his chance as a regular in the outfield. The former top prospect slashed .271/.376/.580 with a minor league-leading 23 homers in 72 games with Triple-A Salt Lake. Adel is expected to see time in both center field and right field alongside Trout. Moniak will start against right-handers; He started Tuesday on the bench with Adell at center.
“I’m happy to be here, but the circumstances aren’t great because you don’t want to see Mike go down and miss any time,” Adele said. “But I’m going to come in, hopefully, do my job and shake this thing up. We’ve got a good thing going and I want to be a part of it.
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