Angels News: Phil Nevin Doesn't Want a Repeat of Last Season with Mike Trout

Angels skipper will be more careful with his superstar slugger

The Los Angeles Angels were rolling at the start of the 2022 season. Through their first 44 games, LA was 27-17 and was primed to make a playoff run for the first time since 2014. After that start, the Halos lost 14 games in a row and could never overcome that disastrous losing streak. 

On top of that, the Angels lost their superstar player Mike Trout in mid-July due to what originally had back spasms and was later placed on the injured list with a stated diagnosis of rib cage inflammation. 

The 31-year-old missed over a month of ball and was ultimately diagnosed with a rare back condition called "costovertebral dysfunction at T5."

Luckily, Trout was able to return after his career was in jeopardy due to the injury, and Angels manager Phil Nevin believes it was due to being overplayed in 2022. Nevin vowed he wouldn't do that again, which is why he has scheduled off days for every player, including Trout. 

The Halos skipper told OC Register's Jeff Fletcher said Mike will have to listen to Nevin more this season about the games he'll play after learning his lesson from last season. 

“Five games in four days and taking that many swings, his volume when he comes into work is quite high,” Nevin said, recalling last year’s Trout situation. “I don’t think it was any coincidence, a short time after that he had some pain in his back. It was a lot for five days. It’s nobody’s fault. He felt good, wanted to win the games and I listened to him. He’ll listen to me more this year.”

A grueling 162-game season can take a toll on some players, even the best in Trout. Due to the lockout before the 2022 season, all teams were required to play two games in one day at certain points in their schedule, which took a toll on number 27. The center fielder's back almost gave up on him, and Angel fans were unsure if he'd return.

We love seeing Mike go out on the field and do his thing; however, we don't want to see him get hurt in the process. We're glad that Nevin is putting his foot down, and hopefully that means a healthy Trout throughout the entire season.