The MLB All-Star Game is slated to take place on July 13 at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado. Recently, the league revealed the first voting returns, and fans of the Los Angeles Angels saw some recognizable faces. Namely, Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani were leaders at their respective positions — Trout in the outfield and Ohtani at designated hitter — and has strong leads as well.
Ohtani should have no issues playing in the All-Star Game, as the Angels have unleashed his full abilities by allowing him to play as often as he wants. Joe Maddon has made it clear he won’t stop Ohtani from playing and participating in other All-Star events, but wants to stay smart about his usage.
Trout, on the other hand, is a slightly different story. He’s still recovering from the Grade 2 calf strain that has held him out since May 17. Maddon gave an update on Trout — and even gave a timeline for his return — but he wasn’t sure what it meant for the All-Star Game, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com:
“He went in for an examination, everything’s coming along really well, the healing process is definitely occurring,” Maddon said. “The timetable is probably at least another month. That’s what it sounds like. If it’s quicker than that, that would be great. I wouldn’t anticipate that, but everything’s absolutely pointing in the right direction. And I think soon he’ll be able to jog a little bit. But the baseball activities are still a little far away. The [All-Star Game] would be up in the air. I think it’d be kind of a stretch from what I’m hearing right now.”
Maddon gave this update on Monday, June 14. If Trout is ready to go in exactly one month, it would mean he’s cleared for action one day after the All-Star Game, but would make his return for the Halos on July 16 to begin the second half of the season.
It’s unlikely that the Angels would allow the All-Star Game to be his first game back in action, which means he’d need to be ready to play by July 11 — the Angels final game of the first half of the season. This is probably why Maddon has some doubt about his availability for the Midsummer Classic.
For the Angels, seeing that Trout is progressing well and is just a few weeks away from returning in great news. The Halos are 15-11 in his absence, doing a good job at staying alive in the postseason race for his eventual return.
Dylan Bundy struggling
While most players on the Angels — and especially pitchers — are hitting their stride right now, Dylan Bundy is seeing the opposite effect. He has struggled mightily throughout the season, and outside of a decent outing last week against the Kansas City Royals, it has been one of his worst seasons in recent memory.
He tried to explain why these issues were coming up, but he had some difficulty finding the answers. He assured it’s not for a lack of effort, but rather some mechanical issues.