On Saturday night vs. the Yankees in New York, Angels’ center fielder Mike Trout went 5-for-5.
He had a homer, three doubles and an infield single for 11 total bases. He scored three times and knocked in four runs. His WAR after 52 games was 4.9 (baseballreference.com version). It puts him on pace for the greatest season in MLB history, at least in regard to advanced statistics. In 1923, Babe Ruth had a WAR of 14.1.
Trout plays at Comerica Park this week, along with Shohei Ohtani, the rookie hitting and pitching sensation signed from Japan. Albert Pujols is one of his generation’s greatest hitters, a certain Hall of Famer. He is the Angels’ first baseman. He takes throws from Andrelton Simmons, one of the slickest fielding shortstops of all time.
There was a time when such marquee power meant something for baseball in this town. Not so much any more.
Maybe it’s because the Tigers have had so many great players of their own the past decade (Pudge Rodriguez, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, David Price, etc.), who have departed.
Perhaps it’s because so many games are available to so many people via so many outlets, along with numerous other entertainment options.
Somewhere along the line, it seems baseball lost its player sizzle.
When I was a kid, it seemed like pretty much everybody in America knew who Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays were, even if they were past their prime, and still after they retired. When there was a rookie sensation such as Vida Blue taking the mound for the Oakland A’s, or the Bash Brothers, Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire were in, there was a serious spike in attendance at Tiger Stadium.
There was the incredible buzz in anticipation of a star coming to town.
A genuine multi-dimensional player along the lines of Mays and Mantle, Trout is widely known among sports fans, although to some it is as “that Philadelphia Eagles fan” after getting an inordinate amoount of camera time during the NFL playoffs. Mantle and Mays were icons. Trout is viewed as just a ball player, albeit the best one.
In the same above-mentioned series, Aaron Judge, the Yankees’ right fielder, threw out a runner at home plate. It was clocked at 100 mph. It was an incredible display of athleticism from a 6-foot-7, 282-pounder, who was once a four-star football recruit as a receiver. As a rookie, he hit 52 home runs. The Yankees are in for a makeup day-night doubleheader at the end of this homestead a week from Monday.
“We want our kids to take the challenge and rise to the occasion,” Tigers’ manager Ron Gardenhire said of the star power visiting. “It’s fun to see some of the best players in the game. Trout is definitely one of the best players, if not the best, in the game.
“These guys are super athletes and fun to watch them play baseball.’’
The list of terrific players in the game is endless. In some ways, MLB has never been better. The last two World Series, in 2016 between the Cubs and Indians, and 2017 with the Astros vs. the Dodgers, were both seven-game, drama-stirrers. The 2014 set won by the Giants over the Royals was similarly compelling.
I hope in this town, as the Tigers embark on the first year of rebuilding mode with a few wins here and there like Sunday over the White Sox, we don’t forget how good Major League Baseball remains overall.
And that it is perhaps better than ever.