The Los Angeles Angels' postseason aspirations have taken a significant hit with injuries to their star players, Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. Trout is anticipated to be sidelined for up to eight weeks due to a broken hamate bone in his left wrist, an injury sustained during a swing on Monday. Ohtani exited Tuesday's game with a blister on his pitching hand's middle finger, adding to the team's woes.
The Angels, who last reached the playoffs in 2014, were four games out of a Wild Card spot entering Wednesday. A recent slump has seen them lose 10 of their last 14 games, dropping their record to 45-43 after being eight games above .500 on June 18.
Both Trout and Ohtani were selected for the 2023 All-Star Game. This marked Trout's 11th All-Star selection and Ohtani's third. Kyle Tucker of the Houston Astros will replace Trout on the AL roster, and Ohtani will not pitch in the game. While there is a possibility Ohtani could still participate as a hitter, his absence from the pitching rotation, where he boasts a 3.32 ERA and 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings, will be a significant loss. This pitching injury comes shortly after Ohtani left a previous start due to a cracked fingernail.
Adding to the Angels' injury troubles, Anthony Rendon left Tuesday's game with a left shin contusion. Rendon's time with the Angels has been plagued by injuries, having played in only 200 games since signing a lucrative contract before the 2020 season. He has already spent time on the injured list this season.
Before his injury, Trout was batting .263 with an .862 OPS. Ohtani, meanwhile, remains the frontrunner for his second AL MVP award, currently hitting .300 with a league-leading 1.044 OPS.
