Mike Trout has established himself unequivocally as the best player in baseball.
While the 27-year-old centerfielder has pair of MVPs and a Rookie of the Year Award on his resume, consider this tidbit: Trout has the highest fWAR (64.0) between 2012 and 2018.
The next closest? Josh Donaldson, at… 36.8 fWAR. In other words, Trout is valued at least 27.2 wins higher than every other player in the league in that time period. That equates to almost four more wins per year.
And there is evidence to suggest that 2018 may have been Trout's finest season yet. He posted career highs in OBP (.460), OPS (1.088) and OPS+ (199) while still hitting 39 homers and stealing 24 bases.
So how much higher can Trout continue to climb? Outside of team success, it would seem that there is little left for him to accomplish in his career in terms of accolades. And the Angels are unlikely to make the playoffs this season.
That said, here are three bold predictions for Trout in 2019:
1. He will win a Gold Glove
This is about the only accomplishment Trout has yet to achieve. And even that could have changed last season if not for the voters.
Red Sox centerfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. won the award last year, and although he posted a higher Ultimate Zone Rating than Trout (7.4 to 4.0), Trout far surpassed him in terms of Defensive Runs Saved (8 to -2).
There is a lot of stiff competition in the American League among outfielders, notably Bradley Jr., Mookie Betts, Kevin Kiermaier, Kevin Pillar and others.
But 2018 was arguably Trout's finest defensive season since his rookie year in 2012. I think he follows it up by winning the Gold Glove this year, meaning the only hardware missing from the trophy case will be a World Series ring.
We can only hope that the greatest player of this generation will achieve that goal one day, as well.
2. 50 homers
Why not? He has posted a slugging percentage over .620 in each of the last two seasons, and probably would have reached the 50-homer plateau in 2017 if not for injuries.
Oh, and despite hitting two fewer homers than his career-high 41 bombs in 2015, Trout's isolated power was actually 26 points higher this season, according to FanGraphs.
Whether you are a fan of traditional or advanced metrics, Trout seems as good a candidate as any to reach 50 dingers. The biggest factor will likely be health.
I think if Trout plays in at least 152 games, he can reach the mark.
3. Trout will finish as runner-up for AL MVP again
Trout has either finished in first or second in the American League MVP voting in every single year of his career except for 2017.
But even if he plays Gold Glove defense and hits 50 homers this season, I still think he misses out on the award.
I think that distinction will be reserved for Aaron Judge, who once again will hit at least 40 homers while also earning a Gold Glove. Judge posted 14 Defensive Runs saved last season and has improved his defense in every season in the league.
And, by the way, the Yankees will be a playoff team. That may be the most important factor in the equation.
Once again, Trout will come up just short.
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