Not many play the game the way Mike Trout does. His constant hustle and outlook on the game are everything any young athlete could want in a role model. He plays the game the right way and is rewarded for it.
On Thursday, Trout added yet another milestone to his well-accomplished career. He passed Hall of Famers Pedro Martinez and Ken Griffey Jr. on the all-time WAR leaderboard.
If you're unfamiliar with WAR, it stands for Wins Above Replacement. It takes in all the player's facets of their game and compares that to a minor leaguer or a replacement-level player.
Trout has an 84.0 WAR. This ranks him 56th on the all-time list. The player above him is Chicago Cubs legend Fergie Jenkins, who owns an 84.4 WAR. Undoubtedly, Trout is in good company.
"Trout only being 31 is nuts," one fan tweeted.
"It's just Trout doing regular Trout things. Nothing to see here," another fan tweeted.
Baseball fans are impressed that Mike Trout has such a high WAR being only 31 years old. He has plenty of time to keep climbing that leaderboard.
Fans can't imagine the WAR he would have if he were on a better team. The Los Angeles Angels have not done him any justice regarding being a competitive baseball team.
Mike Trout will go down as one of the greatest
The only bad thing any fan can say about Mike Trout is the team that he plays for. During his career, he's only made the postseason once. It was in 2014, when the Kansas City Royals swept them.
Los Angeles has struggled to put key players around Trout to make a winning team. While they added superstar Shohei Ohtani, it still hasn't been enough for them to make the postseason.
It's been unfortunate for fans and the game of baseball. The postseason should consistently include one of the best players in the world. Instead, his season ends consistently ends in October.
This year, the team has gotten off to a good start. They're 23-22, just four games out of first place in the American League West. They've put themselves in a good position to fight for the division.
It will be interesting to see if the Angels can keep playing competitive baseball all season long and make the postseason. Fans deserve to see the duo of Trout and Ohtani under the brightest lights.