ANAHEIM — A day after Mike Trout came out of a game because of soreness in his surgically repaired left knee, the Angels were still unsure of his status.
Trout was not in the lineup, but he was also not on the injured list.
“We’re still checking,” Manager Ron Washington said on Thursday. “That’s all I can say. We’re still checking.”
Trout said after Wednesday’s game that he felt something after he hit first base hard while trying to beat out an infield hit. Trout had two surgeries on his torn meniscus last year.
After the game, the three-time American League MVP said it was already feeling better, and he hoped to get back in the lineup as soon as Thursday.
On Thursday, Washington said he hadn’t yet talked to Trout, but he remained cautiously optimistic based on their conversations from the previous day.
“He was in a good mood,” Washington said of their interactions on Wednesday. “Hopefully it’s nothing too serious.”
All Angels fans will certainly be skeptical of any reports on Trout’s health because of what has happened over the past few years. Trout, 33, missed most of the 2021 and 2024 seasons, and half of the 2023 season, with various injuries. He also missed about five weeks in 2022.
The Angels moved him from center field to right field this season in an effort to keep his legs fresher.
Trout had been in the starting lineup in all 29 games until Thursday.
MONCADA UPDATE
Third baseman Yoán Moncada has started hitting left-handed off a coach in the cage, and he hit on the field on Thursday, for the first time since he went on the injured list with a bruised right thumb.
Moncada has been hitting from the right side for weeks, and he’s been doing defensive drills.
Moncada is going to need a rehab assignment, but Washington seems inclined to get him back as quickly as possible because of the impact he can have on the lineup.
Moncada had only four hits in 21 at-bats, but he also drew six walks, giving him a .370 on-base percentage.
NOTES
There is still no timetable for right-handed reliever Ben Joyce (right shoulder inflammation). “Nothing changed on him yet,” Washington said. “That’s all I can give you right now. I’m reading the medical report and there’s no change.” …
Right-handed reliever Robert Stephenson (rehab from Tommy John surgery) was scheduled for his first live batting practice session in Arizona. Stephenson is eligible to be activated in late May. Once he begins a rehab assignment, he must be activated within 30 days. …
Right-hander Sam Bachman (thoracic outlet syndrome) continues to face hitters in Arizona. …
Infielder Luis Rengifo got the day off on Thursday. Washington said he thought Rengifo was “dragging” in Seattle earlier this week. …
Right-handed reliever Carl Edwards Jr. refused the Angels’ outright assignment, instead becoming a free agent.
UP NEXT
Tigers (LHP Tarik Skubal, 3-2, 2.34) at Angels (RHP José Soriano, 2-4, 4.50), Friday, 6:38 p.m., FDSN West, 830 AM
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