Angels' Mike Trout eyes '20-plus' steals; Washington 'not concerned' - ESPN

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Trout broke into the majors as a true five-tool player who stole 49 bases during his first full season with the Los Angeles Angels in 2012.

Trout stole 24 bases as recently as 2018, but the three-time AL MVP didn't steal that many in the next five seasons combined while age, injuries and the Angels' overall philosophy slowed him down.

Before Trout took the field for the Angels' home opener against Boston on Friday night, he said he's eager to start running wild on the bases again — and manager Ron Washington is willing to see it happen.

«I think 20-plus would be cool,» Trout said when asked how many bases he would like to steal. «Thirty would be really fun.»

Trout stole only six total bases in the previous four seasons, three of which ended early because of major injuries. He's now a muscled, 32-year-old power hitter who doesn't rely on speed, but Trout remains confident he can reclaim the form on the basepaths that made him perhaps the most versatile offensive talent of his generation.

He realizes he might be thinking about the risk while running the bases this year. He played in only 237 games over the past three seasons, but says he can't play worried about another injury.

«If you're out there holding back a little, I think sometimes it puts you in a worse position,» Trout said. «I'm not saying that's what happened [with other injuries], but I feel like if I want to steal a base, I can steal a base, and Wash gave me the go-ahead. Looking back at the managers I had before, if I [told] them I wanted to steal some bags, I would have. They wouldn't have minded it. But it wasn't like a game plan we had before. So the last three, four years, it hasn't really worked. So I figured why not just go out