Mike Trout is expected to remain with the Los Angeles Angels through the Aug. 3 trade deadline after reports this week found no sign that owner Arte Moreno has softened his stance on moving the franchise outfielder.
That assessment rests on concrete numbers. The Angels sit 24-39, tied for baseball’s worst record with the Colorado Rockies, and operate with what’s been rated the third-worst farm system in the sport. Trout, meanwhile, is hitting.240/.411/.479 with 14 homers in 62 games and still has four years and $148.5 million remaining on his contract after this season.
Reporter Jeff Passan said there has been no indication Moreno has relented on his unwillingness to move his franchise player this summer. The history of owner intervention is part of the explanation: Buster Olney reported Moreno reacted angrily in July 2022 when the front office floated trading Shohei Ohtani, and the club later made Ohtani available in 2023 without any trade coming close before the deadline when the team was 56-51 and four games out.
Those episodes show why Trout’s fate feels stalled now. A Trout trade would reshape a playoff contender’s lineup — he is enjoying his best season in years — but it would also force the Angels to reckon with a thin system and an owner who has shown unwillingness to push a marquee move. The Padres reportedly had been prepared in 2022 to offer a package for Ohtani that exceeded the deal Washington later used to acquire Juan Soto, a reminder of what an aggressive buyer can bring to the table; that appetite exists again around this deadline.
The push-and-pull is simple: contenders covet Trout’s on-base skills and power, yet the Angels’ present roster standing and shallow farm make a clean selloff complicated even if the front office wanted one. Trout’s contract — four years and $148.5 million remaining — is a major piece in any negotiation, and his gaudy plate discipline this season keeps his trade value high even as batting average sits at.240.
For teams chasing additions, the practical window shrinks as Aug. 3 approaches. For the Angels and their fans, Moreno’s posture is the deciding factor; Passan’s reporting suggests the owner has not relented, and the club’s recent record offers little immediate pressure to force a sale. That combination leaves Trout on the roster for now, and would-be suitors with the payroll and prospect capital to pry him loose face a narrow path.
The unanswered question is the most consequential: will Arte Moreno change course before the Aug. 3 trade deadline and authorize a deal that would send Trout to a playoff contender? If he does not, the most likely outcome is the one now in view — Trout finishes the summer in an Angels uniform and the league heads into the stretch with one fewer bona fide midseason blockbuster than many hoped for.
