Mike Trout is not of this Earth

[sneakypower]

best rookie seasons by fWAR Edited July 26, 2012 by sneakypower

[UMFan83]

EDIT: Piazza/McGwire don't make the list because their rookie years weren't technically their first years.

 

Also, going by this standard, Fred Lynn doesn't belong on the list, because he played 15 games in '74

 

Of course neither would Trout

[Bryants Disco Ball]

I know some people here were saying a month or so ago that they would rather have Castro than Trout. Do any still feel that way?

at the point of that discussion, his career line was .260/.323/.455 and since then, he's produced a .435 babip-fueled .389/.442/.658 line, so it's safe to say that's a harder argument to make these days

 

with the benefit of full hindsight, you're remarkably insightful it seems

 

Just for the record, I'm not saying people are wrong. Just wondering if a half season of trout has changed minds for good or if people think trout won't end up being as good as the player he is showing now.

[bcl412]

I watched Trout play in Cedar Rapids. He's probably going to be the best player I ever saw play in the Minors. Though I did see Prince play in single A as well.

[Pushfrog98]

I watched Trout play in Cedar Rapids. He's probably going to be the best player I ever saw play in the Minors. Though I did see Prince play in single A as well.

I saw Henry Blanco on a rehab assignment. Kerry Wood was the starter that day and some Darwin guy was at SS.

[17 Seconds]

also only been caught stealing 3 times.

 

he's got a good chance to win the ROY, MVP, and batting title

[Ding Dong Johnson]

I watched Trout play in Cedar Rapids. He's probably going to be the best player I ever saw play in the Minors. Though I did see Prince play in single A as well.

I saw Javier Baez. Game. Set. Match.

[DiamondMind]

I'm pretty sure they made him in a laboratory somewhere. Unbelievable so far.

[CubmanPi]

Leads the AL in batting, runs scored, stolen bases, bWAR, and OPS+.

[Guest]

who do you take... harper or trout? still harper? Edited August 3, 2012 by 17 Seconds

[El Duderino]

how do you take... harper or trout? still harper?

 

Trout.

[Clem Fandango]

I mean, obviously at this stage Trout. You can still make a case for Harper, but honestly Trout is so damn good right now it's hard not to choose him over Harper.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

who do you take... harper or trout? still harper?

 

Harper.

[Guest]

Trout

[Clem Fandango]

ESPN did a Sports Science piece on Trout's jumping catch against J.J. Hardy

 

http://espn.go.com/losangeles/video/clip?id=8232353

[Post Count Padder]

And he's still just 20. It's scary to think if he keeps this up what he'll be like in his prime.

[Clem Fandango]

Did anyone anticipate his power coming so soon? I kind of expected him to top out at 15 homers when he was brought up in a best case scenario, due to age and learning curve against major league pitching. If he's already a 30HR guy at age 20...

[El Duderino]

I'm pretty sure no one excepted him to hit his ceiling in his rookie year. The guy has a 185 OPS+. [expletive] unreal.

[Derwood]

I can't wait for the meatball-y reaction when he invariably has a "down" season in a year or two

[Clem Fandango]

I can't wait for the meatball-y reaction when he invariably has a "down" season in a year or two

 

And then "Do you think the Angels will sell low on Trout? Coleman and Vitters gets it done?"

[Guest]

he's so good that is goes unnoticed that he's 37 for 40 in steal attempts so far in his career.

 

definite 40/40 potential

[Clem Fandango]

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/34222/mike-trouts-rookie-campaign-is-history-in-the-making

 

Trout turned 21 on Tuesday. He leads the American League in batting average (.346), runs scored (87), and stolen bases (36). He ranks second in slugging average (.602), first in Weighted Runs Created Plus (185), and first in Wins Above Replacement (7.1, per Baseball-Reference.com). He's stolen 27 bases in a row, an Angels franchise record. He's hitting .346/.409/.601, good for an OPS of 1.010 that would be the second-best by a rookie in 55 years, trailing only Albert Pujols's 1.013 in 2001. Only three players in baseball ever stole more bases before their 21st birthday than Trout: Ty Cobb, Claudell Washington, and Sherry Magee. If he holds on to win the batting title, he'd become the third-youngest player, at 21 years and 57 days, ever to accomplish that feat, trailing only Al Kaline and Cobb. Only one other player racked up a .350-plus batting average, 15 or more homers, and 30 or more steals before August 1 of any given season: Rickey Henderson, in 1985. Only three other players this young have ever posted an OPS of 1.000 or higher in a season: Alex Rodriguez, Mel Ott, and Ted Williams.

 

(Deep breath.)

 

If Trout plays every game the rest of this season and maintains his current pace, he'd hit .346 with 32 homers and 57 steals, something no one else has ever done (even if he cools off a bit, no player has managed .340 with 20 homers and 40 steals either). If he goes on to win AL MVP, he'll become the youngest player ever to win that award, undercutting Vida Blue's age during his 1971 campaign by more than a full year. Trout's hitting hot zones are pretty much everywhere, even out of the strike zone. He plays great defense, too, ranking second among major league center fielders in Ultimate Zone Rating, tied for fifth in the MLB the MLB lead among all outfielders with 10 13 Defensive Runs Saved, and standing alone with the most jaw-dropping pair of catches by any player this year.

 

Try to evaluate Trout subjectively and things get even crazier. Just eight rookies have ever been rated best in the game for any category in Baseball America's Best Tools survey of big league managers. Trout won three this year, Best Baserunner, Fastest Baserunner, and Most Exciting Player. Kaline, one of the few players to perform near Trout's level at a similar age, compared Trout to another early-developing, five-tool star: "He's a strong guy, runs really well, power — he reminds me a little bit of a Mantle."

[Clem Fandango]

Another fluff piece out of ESPN LA...

 

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/mlb/story/_/id/8249312/will-los-angeles-angels-outfielder-mike-trout-stand-test-time

[sneakypower]

standing at 93 R, 22 HR, 66 RBI, 38 SB, .340 - a really good season - except, he hasn't even reached 100 G yet

 

his 162 G split: 156 R, 222 H, 37 HR, 111 RBI, 64 SB (5 CS)

 

no player has ever had even a 30/60 season before

[Elrhino]

I wonder what the reaction of Angel fans would be if you told them last November that they would add Albert Pujols, Zach Grienke, and CJ Wilson; plus Mike Trout would have one of the greatest rookie seasons in baseball history, and they would be a .500 team and 8.5 games out of the AL West in the last week of August.