The reigning American League Most Valuable Player reported to Angels spring training camp in Tempe, Ariz., on Monday and made his views clear about the Houston Astros scandal. Trout was unhappy with the Astros’ cheating ways and made it clear he felt the commissioner was way too soft on the players involved.
“It’s tough,” said Trout to a group of reporters Monday morning. “They cheated. I don’t agree with the punishments, with the players not getting anything. It was a player-driven thing. It sucks. Like I said, a guy’s career’s been affected and a lot of people lost jobs, it was tough.”
Trout continued by saying jokingly, “Me going up to the plate knowing what was coming, would be pretty fun up there.” Trout mentioned at least a couple of Astros players reached out to attempt to explain themselves to the three-time MVP, but he would not elaborate on the details of that conversation.
When asked about his thoughts on the 2017 championship, Trout further shared his disenchantment with the MLB punishment. “When you know what’s coming it’s definitely going to help you. It’s tough, taking the trophy away, taking the rings away. I think they should definitely do something. To cheat like that and not get anything, it’s sad to see.”
Rob Manfred has been receiving extreme scrutiny in the weeks following the Astros’ investigation which indicated that the cheating was player-driven yet the Astros players were reportedly provided immunity for providing their testimony to the MLB investigators this winter. MLB suspended Astros manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow for one year while Houston owner Jim Crane immediately fired both in the wake of the suspensions. Astros players reported to their spring training camp in West Palm Beach, Fla., last week and provided apologies that have mostly resulted in negative responses by fans and the baseball community in general.
Trout further expanded on his thoughts of cheating by saying, “It’s just sad to see. You know, to just cheat like that. It’s tough. If I was up at the plate, it would be fun for sure, but it’s cheating so it’s tough to see.”
The reigning MVP and his Angels teammates will be ready for the Astros when they open the 2020 season at Minute Maid Park with a three-game series beginning March 26. The Angels and Astros will meet for ten games in the first 30 days of the season including the home opening series in Anaheim beginning Apr. 3, a series that is sure to be a bang with Angels and jaded Dodgers fans uniting to share with the Astros players their disgust for three straight games.
