Angels News: Mike Trout Remains Without Timetable for Return

The superstar remains out with a broken hamate bone.

It's been an up and down season for the Los Angeles Angels, and the same can be said for their superstar centerfielder. 

Mike Trout began his season slowly, then picked up the pace only to get sidelined with a broken hamate bone since early July. 

It's been a similar path for the Angels as a whole. They started off the year on a downturn, then started winning around the trade deadline, and now have hit a wall with them losing nine of their last 12 games to fall six and a half games behind the last AL wild card spot. 

As far as Trout is concerned, he was making progress and a return seemed to be getting closer by the day, but there's still no timetable for that return, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. 

Mike Trout said he is hitting off the machine, but still not full velo. He said there’s still some pain but it is getting better. Still no timetable.

— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) August 14, 2023

With there only being roughly a month and a half left in the regular season and the Angels trying to stay alive in the playoff race, the fact that Trout is not hitting full velocity yet is a concern. 

Additionally, Angels manager Phil Nevin described Trout's injury as a "pain tolerance thing," and given that he's still feeling pain along with not hitting at full velocity could pose problems as far as his potential comeback this season goes. 

If the Halos hope to make a dramatic turnaround, Trout likely needs to play a big role in it come September. 

Shohei Ohtani is in the midst of an incredible season, but if the Angels centerfielder remains out of the lineup, it will be hard for the team to pull off the already difficult task of a turnaround. 

We'll see how things go for the 32-year-old Angels mainstay over the next couple weeks, but this latest update isn't encouraging for both him and his team.