Ever since the announcement that the 2026 All-Star Game would be in Philadelphia, Mike Trout set a goal to play in that game.
Read more Status Update: Life Time Brea Athletic Country Club opens at Brea Mall
As excited as Trout is to return to the All-Star Game for the first time in seven years, and to do so near his hometown and with his two young sons in attendance, he knows the experience comes with one nagging annoyance.
Before heading to Philadelphia, Trout knew that the event was going to spark a whole new round of questions about his future with the Angels. During the media availability on the day before the All-Star Game, each player sits at a table and wave after wave of reporters approach with questions.
For Trout, the event is certain to be filled with: “Mike, why don’t you want to be traded to the Phillies? Or any team that can get you to the playoffs?”
“I’m going to hear it a thousand times, especially when I get there,” Trout said over the weekend. “But it is what it is.”
For the record, Trout repeated what he has said whenever he’s been asked. He wants to stay with the Angels “for sure,” he said.
Trout has a full no-trade clause in his contract, so he’s not going anywhere without it being his choice. Also, he’s about to turn 35 and he’s due to make $36 million per year for the next four years. He’s been on the injured list each of the past six seasons, although for shorter stints lately.
His relative good health has sparked something of an on-field renaissance. He heads into the All-Star break hitting .237 with 18 home runs and an .863 OPS.
Trout has been elected to the All-Star Game by the fans 11 times and selected as a reserve one other time.
What was once an annual rite of summer for him has become more rare lately. The All-Star Game was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and Trout was injured and couldn’t participate in 2021, 2022 and 2023. In 2024 and 2025, he wasn’t even selected. So Trout hasn’t actually played in the Midsummer Classic since 2019.
It’s all the better that he’s returning for a game in Philadelphia, which is 35 minutes from Millville, N.J., his hometown.
When Trout played in Philadelphia for the first time in 2014, the Phillies declared Millville Night, and busloads of people came in for the game, including the mayor. The Phillies fans cheered Trout all night, which is a rare treatment for a visiting player. Trout said it gave him “chills.”
Read more Ukraine fears that with Sen. Lindsey Graham’s death, it will have a weaker link to Trump
At the All-Star Game, an exhibition after all, he figures to get among the best receptions of any of the players.
Trout said he appreciates that Philadelphia fans don’t typically cheer visiting players, so he appreciates that they make an exception for him.
“The fans have been unbelievable,” Trout said. “I know how Eagles fans are when an opposing player comes into town. To hear that ovation means a lot. I think ultimately if you look at fans in Philly sports, they appreciate people that play the game hard, play the game the right way. That’s how I was since I was a kid.”
Trout went to some Phillies games when he was a kid. His best memory, though, is a game he didn’t even attend. He was a senior in high school when he went with some friends to tailgate in the Citizens Bank Park parking lot during the 2008 World Series, which the Phillies won.
Trout has been back to the ballpark three times since joining the Angels. In addition to the 2014 series, the Angels played there in 2022 and 2025.
In 2022, the Angels were in the midst of a 14-game losing streak and Trout was mired in a career-worst 0-for-26 slump. Last season, the Angels won two of three in Philadelphia, and Trout went 4 for 13 with two doubles in the series.
Seeing Trout again, this time as an All-Star, figures to be a big moment for all the people in his circle.
“That’s going to be something special for Mike,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said. “I know he’s been thinking about that a lot and especially coming into the year, knowing he’s in Philly. That’s something special for him. The guy deserves it. He deserves everything. Obviously the career speaks for itself but now to be able to go play in an All-Star Game in Philly, close to home, it’s definitely going to be a cool experience for him.”
Trout has never competed in the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game, but he said he was strongly considering it this season, before the hamstring injury that knocked him out for three weeks. Instead, he’ll happily watch from the field with his sons, ages 5 and 2.
He’s excited for the rest of his family to be there too.
“They’re all fired up,” he said. “My wife is too. With the Fan Fest and spending time with her family and my family, it’s going to be a cool couple days.”
Read more Keystone Pipeline system’s operator agrees to pay a $26.9M penalty over a major Kansas oil spill