LA Angels: Comparing Mike Trout with Kevin Durant

For the LA Angels, yesterday’s news about Kevin Durant joining the Golden State Warriors provides a sobering fact. Mike Trout will soon have his own free agency to question his career.

The sports world was rocked by news of former  Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Kevin Durant’s decision to join Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors yesterday.

A decision that will ultimately decide KD’s legacy and his status among the leagues greatest players.

Leaving a small market team for brighter lights and a bigger city is a trend in the NBA; however, could it bleed into Major League Baseball?

Some are reminded of when Alex Rodriguez left the Texas Rangers for the New York Yankees.  There was also the time Greg Maddux left the Chicago Cubs and signed with the Atlanta Braves.

The deciding factor for Durant was winning a championship, something the LA Angels haven’t done since 2002.

What’s concerning here, is the LA Angels have their own KD in Mike Trout. Trout is a poster child for the LA Angels in the same way Durant was for OKC.

LA Angels pitchers Andrew Heaney and Garrett Richards both took to twitter to voice their displeasure concerning KD’s free agency. Heaney and Richards are Oklahoma natives. Heaney said “I hope Draymond welcomes him with a swift kick in the nuts.” Richards retweeted a couple of Kevin’s tweets from years past about LeBron going to Miami.

Trout is a superstar on Kevin Durant’s level, he’s like him in a lot of ways as well. He’s a good guy, he always has time for fans (especially kids), and he is on a team that just can’t seem to get over the hump to win a title.

In every sport there’s always a question of loyalty, will a player ride until the bitter end for his team? Currently, the LA Angels have Trout locked in a contract until 2020, four more seasons until he can either resign or join a contender.

The 24-year old superstar will be 28 when his contract expires, he’ll be in the latter stages of his prime. The LA Angels do not want to see Mike Trout leave the team and the city for a championship contender. Especially if it were a rival like the Boston Red Sox.

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However, given what Kevin Durant has done, the LA Angels should be mindful of what kind of an impact not being a title contender can have on a player.

We all know about the injury situation, and we all know about some of the ludicrous contracts the LA Angels are currently shelling out.

Making the LA Angels a World Series contender now, has to be a priority. There is nothing more irresponsible and reckless than having a superstar of Trout’s caliber and not equipping him with the pieces needed to contend.

Next: Playing hookey

The fact of the matter is that Championship teams aren’t built overnight. If you’re the LA Angels you salvage the season and start the building process for a World Series team now. To me, that starts with the GM Billy Eppler who is admittedly saying we don’t need to make trades for a wild card push.