Mike Trout to have season-ending surgery on right foot

Mike Trout’s 2019 season is over.

The Los Angeles Angels released a statement about Trout’s foot injury on Sunday, breaking the news that the perennial American League MVP candidate would be having season-ending surgery later in the week.

Trout, 28, has been out since Sept. 8 with a foot injury. The Angels have identified it as Morton’s neuroma, which is a nerve issue affecting several of his toes. Trout has continually hoped to return to the field since he was first scratched — on Saturday he expressed optimism that he would be back on Sunday for good — but now we know that he won’t be back until 2020.

The Angels aren’t going to the playoffs, but this is still a major blow to the last few weeks of 2019 baseball. The sport is better when its best players are on the field, and Trout is the best of the best. He’s hitting .291/.438/.645, and is at or near the top of every important offensive category in baseball. He’s second in home runs (45), slugging percentage (.645) and OPS (1.083), and leads in on-base percentage (.438) and walks (110). He’s likely to be the AL MVP, and missing the last few weeks of the season shouldn’t change that.

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 04: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim looks on from the dugout prior to his game against the Oakland Athletics at Ring Central Coliseum on September 04, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 04: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim looks on from the dugout prior to his game against the Oakland Athletics at Ring Central Coliseum on September 04, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

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