Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout is piping hot at the plate right now, hitting moonshot home runs virtually anytime he makes solid contact. Trout just went 6-for-16 in a four-game set against the New York Yankees with five homers, nine RBI, and 21 total bases. His fifth and final home run of the series on Thursday traveled an astounding 446 feet, making Trout the first visiting player in Yankee Stadium's history to hit five homers in a single series. Iconic stuff.
What's gotten into Trout? He was slumping as of a week ago, but has suddenly turned things around 180 degrees and looks like an MVP again in the batter's box.
446-FOOT BLAST
— MLB (@MLB) April 16, 2026
Mike Trout homers in a FOURTH straight game 😤 pic.twitter.com/Fcu8eLLvav
It turns out, Trout made a slight adjustment to his mechanics starting on April 10 that may have led to his explosive showing in the Bronx. According to MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger, Trout decided to reincorporate a move at the plate that he did at the end of 2025 during a hot stretch: It's a very slight step backwards with his right foot as the pitch arrives.
Mike Trout's mechanical adjustment has unlocked MVP mode for Angels
Trout said that he's always stepped backwards like this in batting practice, but hasn't always done so during games, per Bollinger. Based on Trout's four games in New York, he should probably keep the step back in the routine!
When Trout is hitting bombs like this consistently, he tends to re-inject belief into the hearts of the Angels' fanbase. It's a contagious situation that also catches on in Los Angeles' clubhouse. Trout wasn't the only Angels hitter slugging the laces off the baseball at Yankee Stadium. On Tuesday, Trout's homer was followed by homers from Jo Adell and Jorge Soler, the first instance of the Angels hitting back-to-back-to-back jacks since 2023.
Adell, like Trout, stayed hot all series long (6-for-17), smashing a grand slam on Thursday off Ryan Yarbrough to put the game out of reach and secure a series split for Los Angeles.
The Angels now have a handful of guys in their lineup with impressive home run tallies to start the year. Trout leads the way with seven. Soler and Zach Neto each have five. Oswald Peraza has four; Adell has three. Following Thursday's win, the Angels ranked second in MLB as a team with 32 home runs, trailing only the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, who had hit 33.
Is Trout's power surge the key to unlocking additional power all across the Angels' lineup? It seems like it early on this season. As Trout goes, the Angels' offense goes.
Fans of the team are thrilled at this development. Los Angeles has a .500 record through 20 games, and the American League West has been full of parity thus far. With Trout looking like this -- or anything close to it -- the Angels might be on the verge of a surprising rest of the season, not to mention an exciting one.
Add us as a preferred source on Google