Emotional Mike Trout responds to being shut down, questions about future with Angels

Mike Trout's voice cracked as he answered a question about his frustration about being shut down. For the third consecutive year, injuries shortened the 32-year-old's season.

Monday was the first time media members talked to Trout since Los Angeles Angels manager Phil Nevin announced that the center fielder was not returning for the remainder of the season and instead being placed on the 60-day injured list.

"Yeah, it's frustrating," said Trout, who suffered a fractured hamate bone in his left wrist on July 3. "It's better now, obviously, but I wanted to get back. It's tough.

"It's been hard on me."

It was apparent that the barrage of injuries has weighed on Trout, as he was visibly upset when he made that last statement. Two years ago, Trout's season was ended due to a right calf strain sustained in May, and in 2022, the outfielder missed 30 games due to a back injury.

With the Angels in playoff contention, Trout admitted that he came back from this year's injury too soon. To expedite his recovery, Trout had the fractured portion surgically removed in July. He was able to return for one game following the procedure on Aug. 22 before returning to the injured list immediately after.

Trout said that with more rest, he expects the pain to subside, and his focus is on having a healthy offseason. Still, this break will be different than past ones.

For the first time since Trout signed his massive,12-year, $426.5 million contract in 2019, the Angels reportedly are open to moving the star — if he's interested in being traded. Even with a healthy Trout, the Angels have gotten no closer to being contenders the past few seasons.

Los Angeles is on the precipice of losing generational talent Shohei Ohtani, who just had season-ending surgery on his elbow, in free agency. It traded away some of its top prospects in moves that didn't pan out. The team is still on the hook for oft-injured star Anthony Rendon, and the team's farm system looks anything but promising.

Even with all of that being the case, it appears Trout won't ask for a trade and has every intention of sticking with the organization through 2030, when his contract is up. When asked if he is certain about staying with the franchise, he doubled down on that stance.