Mike Trout is back. For the first time since July 3, the 3x American League MVP suits up for the Los Angeles Angels. He's in tonight's lineup, starting in center field and batting second against the Cincinnati Reds. This means everything to the Angels, as making the playoffs could persuade Shohei Ohtani to re-sign with the team.

Trout has missed more than six weeks with a fractured bone in his left hand. He may not be as dominant as he once was, but Trout is still one of the best players in Major League Baseball. He's hitting at a career low .263 rate, but he hit 18 home runs in the 81 games he played before injury. His OPS+ is still at 132, which is also a career low, but still solid.

Mike Trout's return fills a massive GOAT-shaped hole in the Angels lineup and brings the leader of the clubhouse back to center field. The Angels are nine games behind the Seattle Mariners for the third AL Wild Card spot. With 37 games left to play, making the postseason might be a long shot. Shohei Ohtani's future plans remain a mystery, but the expectation is he will head elsewhere in search of team success if the Angels miss the playoffs.

The team needs to put together over a month's worth of very strong play and a lot of luck to sneak into the Wild Card. Mike Trout is just the guy to lead that charge and potentially save the franchise. Losing Ohtani because of a lack of team success after largely wasting Trout's career would be a catastrophic failure for the Angels organization. Really, it already has been just that.