New Angels ownership could finally give Mike Trout his Aaron Donald moment

Mike Trout will forever be remembered as the greatest player of his generation. His run from 2012 through 2020 will stand the test of time as one of the most dominant stretches the game has ever seen. Unfortunately, because of the Los Angeles Angels' mismanagement, he has very little to show for it beyond his own personal accolades.

Arte Moreno's stunning decision to sell the team could change all of that. In fact, it should change all of that. The Angels will now be bankrolled by Los Angeles Rams (and Denver Nuggets and Arsenal F.C.) owner Stan Kroenke, meaning that the Angels will have the richest owner in MLB.

It's Kroenke's other LA team, the Rams, that could provide the blueprint for the Angels and could provide Trout with hope. The Rams also enjoyed a generational talent who didn't get a lot of support early in his career, but ended up taking home a championship: Aaron Donald.

Stan Kroenke can follow the Aaron Donald playbook to revitalize the Angels around Mike Trout

Donald didn't suffer as long as Trout has, but after being drafted 13th overall in 2014, it took a while for the Rams to find sustained success. He endured three straight losing seasons to begin his career, bottoming out at 4-12 in 2016.

Kroenke brought the Rams back to Los Angeles that very same year, and the following season, the tides began to change. The Rams went 11-5 in 2017 under new head coach Sean McVay, making the playoffs for the first time since 2004. Sound familiar? If the Halos can make the playoffs next season, they will have snapped their drought after 13 years, just like the Rams.

The Rams lost the Super Bowl in 2018, and then finally took home the Lombardi Trophy in 2021. They did this by spending big on veteran talent and aggressively trading away first-round picks to further stock up around Donald.

The recipe is clear. Find a cornerstone. Get a dynamic and innovative coach (manager) to lead the way, and then aggressively find talent with bold but prudent moves. Trout isn't at the peak of his powers the way Donald was when the Rams started their run, but he's proven that he still has a decent amount left in the tank.

Trading draft picks isn't as big of a thing in baseball, but dealing prospects is a suitable facsimile for that strategy. Fortunately, John Mozeliak has built up the Angels' farm to the point where it has some real chips that can be cashed in. Add in some healthy spending in free agency, and you're on your way.

The hardest part might be finding the next manager, assuming Kurt Suzuki isn't brought back, to fill the McVay role. Kroenke, unlike Moreno, lets his subject matter experts in the front office make these calls, so this might not be as hard as it seems.

Trout might not be willing to convert to a Rams fan any time soon, but he might become a Stan Kroenke fan if the new owner can repeat his past history and create a system where talent is brought in to support the 11-time All-Star for the first time in his career. Trout might finally play winning baseball, and it's something that has finally given us all a chance to dream.

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