Mike Trout to Phillies dream might finally be dead, says MLB insider

While it has always been wishful thinking and a long shot at best, the dream of seeing Mike Trout in a Philadelphia Phillies uniform is finally dead, at least according to one MLB insider. Trout never wanted to leave the Los Angeles Angels; his recent knee injury and surgery may have ultimately secured that fate.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic recently laid out the case for why Trout will be stuck in Anaheim forever (subscription required). He even mentions the Phillies as a fit for the generational talent, if he were to change course and leverage his way to a new team.

"Armed with full no-trade protection, he could have leveraged his way to the Philadelphia Phillies, the team closest to his hometown of Millville, N.J.," Rosenthal writes. "He could have blended in with a clubhouse full of hungry stars — Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber, Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola."

Imagine adding the three-time MVP and 11-time All-Star to this Phillies group in the prime of their World Series contention window.

Mike Trout to Phillies dream might finally be dead, says MLB insider

Even though it would be a homecoming of sorts for the Millville, N.J., native, Trout's chances of escaping the chronically mismanaged Angels organization grow slimmer by the day, compounded by the latest injury. As Rosenthal says, an unlikely series of even more improbable events would have to occur for a trade to become realistic.

Trout would have to first do a 180 and decide he no longer wants to spend his entire career in one place. Despite the track record (1,518 games, three postseason games), he still wants to win with the Angels.

The Angels would also have to be the Angels again. No problem there. They are currently 12-23, and that was with a healthy and resurgent Trout for most of that time.

Angels owner Arte Moreno would also have to come to his senses if Trout were to ask for a trade. He would actually have to offer a deal that another team would find acceptable to take on the 32-year-old's massive contract. The deal still has seven years (including this season) left at $35.5 million a year.

The Phillies trading for Trout has never really made sense, but the idea, dream, fantasy, whatever you want to call it, has been bandied around plenty. The volume of calls for Trout to ask out and for the Phillies to welcome him home only increased after Shohei Ohtani abandoned ship this offseason. He smartly signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, leaving Trout to fend for himself.

But, as it stands now, with Trout out of commission for the foreseeable future, the dream is officially dead.