Where Does Angels' Mike Trout Rank Among Baseball's 500-Homer Candidates?

Jeremy Hanna | Aug 31, 2024

Apr 9, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout (27) celebrates in the dugout after hitting a two run home run in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The 2024 Major League Baseball season has been rough for the Los Angeles Angels. Not only are they in the middle of a rebuilding year, but they also lost outfielder Mike Trout, their star player, early in the season.

Since 2019, Trout has had four seasons end early due to injury. Additionally, his 2022 season was marred with injuries, although he came back to finish it out.

This injury history has caused fans and analysts alike to worry that Trout will never join the likes of Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, and Babe Ruth in the 500 Home Run Club.

This includes Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports, who recently ranked eighteen MLB players based on their likelihood of making it to 500 home runs.

Trout found himself in the "If Health Permits" category, bumping elbows with Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees.

"These three sluggers would be promoted to the category of 'likely' if it wasn't for their injury history and, in Ohtani's case, two-way responsibilities," Thosar said. "Ohtani's durability will always be in question so long as he continues pitching and hitting, and he would need to stay on the field and average 40 home runs for the next seven years to even come close to 500."

"It's dicey," Thosar continued. "The same goes for Trout, who many expected to land in the 500 HR club, but that seems doubtful now, given his uptick of stints on the injured list. "

Thosar believes that, of the three, Stanton is the most likely to accomplish the feat since he only needs to hit 78 more home runs and he still has three more years left on his contract.

Thosar put four sluggers ahead of this trio that she believes are likely to reach 500 homers in their careers: Aaron Judge of the Yankees, Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies, Juan Soto of the Yankees, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Still, it's hard to count any of these players out. Ohtani has proven to be a machine, capable of accomplishing anything he sets his mind to. Just look at his success with stealing bases this season.

Additionally, you can't take Trout out of the equation. An 11-time All-Star and three-time AL MVP, Trout has won nine Silver Slugger awards. That's twice as many as Ohtani and Stanton combined.

On top of that, trout's stats remain good when he is able to play. In the 29 games he played this season, he recorded 10 home runs and 14 RBI. He set the record for the fastest Angels player to reach six home runs.

Right now, the best thing for Trout is to rest and recuperate in time for the 2025 season. And when he comes back, he needs to take care of himself so he can join the 500 Home Run Club like he deserves.

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