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After 51 days on the sidelines, three-time American League MVP Mike Trout returned to the Los Angeles Angels' lineup on Tuesday.
Trout has been out of the lineup since July 3, when he suffered an injury to his left hand during a game against the San Diego Padres. The power-hitting slugger has appeared in just 82 of the club's 126 games this season and will be looking to make up for lost time.
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It has been a grueling and strenuous few months for an Angels team that has struggled without its leader. Since Trout's injury, the Halos are 16-22 and have dropped to 61-65. They are languishing in fourth place in the AL West and trail the first-place Texas Rangers by 11 games.
Trout's return could not come soon enough for an Angels fanbase that is holding on to a slim chance of playoff qualification. Despite the club investing heavily in the roster and Shohei Ohtani putting up big numbers, the Angels season is slowly slipping away.
MLB fans took to social media to react to the return of one of baseball's all-time greats.
Aside from winning the prestigious AL MVP award on three occasions, Mike Trout is a 11-time All-Star and a nine-time Silver Slugger award winner. He was named the AL Rookie of the Year in 2012 and is one of the few players to maintain a batting average above .300 over a 13-year career.
Mike Trout ranks second in the Los Angeles Angels' lineup with 18 home runs
Since making his debut in 2012, Mike Trout has been one of the MLB's top players. He has racked up 368 home runs, 940 RBIs and 1,624 hits in 1,489 regular season games.
This year, the outfielder is slashing .263/.367/.490 and has 18 home runs and 44 RBIs. He ranks second in the Angels roster in home runs and third in runs. His offensive output has been impressive considering he has appeared in just 65 percent of the club's games.
While many fans are excited to see the return of one of the league's elite hitters, others believe it might be too late. The Angels have just 36 games left to salvage something from this season and are 10 games out of the wild-card race.
