Mike Trout returns from IL to Angels lineup, back on track to play in first All-Star Game since 2019
When Mike Trout was named a starting American League outfielder for the 2026 MLB All-Star Game over the weekend, he described this year's Midsummer Classic as an event that "was on the list for a while."
It's taking place at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, an easy drive from where Trout grew up in Millville, New Jersey. And now the 12-time All-Star is back on track to play in that exhibition after his Los Angeles Angels announced Wednesday that they activated him off the injured list and reinserted him in the lineup for the second game of their road series versus the Texas Rangers.
Next Tuesday could mark the first time Trout plays in an All-Star Game since 2019, the same year he won his third AL MVP award. Although Trout was selected to play in the Midsummer Classic during the 2021 through ‘23 seasons, injuries kept him out of the event those years.
His latest injury was a hamstring strain that landed him on the 10-day IL last month. Trout explained to reporters that he injured his right hamstring while running to first base in the eighth inning of an 8-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 17.
At the time, Trout, who will turn 35 in August, had missed only one game this season. His lone day off came April 6 after he was hit by a pitch.
Through 74 outings in the 2026 campaign, the center fielder and designated hitter has logged 17 homers and 36 RBI while slashing .234/.394/.472. Trout's .866 OPS is his second-best in the past four seasons.
Trout was on pace for his first 30-plus-homer season since 2022. In April, he exploded for five home runs across a four-game series versus the New York Yankees in the Bronx. Along the way, he took part in the sixth back-to-back-to-back home run sequence of his 16-season career.
Last season, to lessen his workload amid his injury-riddled 30s, Trout mostly DH'd. But in 2026, he returned to his roots, once again lining up in center field.
In his first game back, though, he'll be starting at DH versus the Rangers. Regardless, he now has the runway to a meaningful All-Star Game near home.
"He's been to it a lot of times, but I know this one meant a lot to him, obviously being in Philly," Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said recently, per MLB.com.
"Just how hard he's worked to get to this spot. I played with Mike for two years. I appreciated the way he went about it. But now being a manager and seeing how he goes about it and what he means to the team, it couldn't have happened to a better guy."
