The Los Angeles Angels appear to have tried their best to ensure Mike Trout would never wear another uniform.
Before he agreed to his current six-year, $144.5-million deal that will make him a free agent after 2020, Trout and the Angels reportedly had some discussions about a potential "lifetime" contract in the area of 14 or 15 years, sources told Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.
Ultimately, according to Heyman, the six-year contract was a compromise - Heyman notes that Trout apparently preferred a shorter deal - and the agreement continues to please all sides. The 25-year-old superstar has since put up numbers that compare to the most elite players to ever step on a diamond, but is still said to have "no regrets" about the decision and remains unconcerned by whether he's earning a record salary, per Heyman.
By signing the six-year deal after winning his first MVP award in 2014 - prior to his first season of arbitration - Trout delayed his free agency by three seasons; had he gone year-to-year like Bryce Harper and other young superstars, he'd be in the midst of a contract year right now.
It's not clear how expensive a 15-year deal for Trout would have run, but as the best player of his generation it's quite possible such a deal would have been the richest in baseball, and perhaps all of professional sports - a mark currently held by Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (13 years, $325 million).
Although the Angels have not had the best luck when it comes to handing out mega-contracts as evidenced by the expensive deals given to Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, and C.J. Wilson that have since hamstrung the franchise, a "lifetime" deal for Trout following his age-22 season may have been among the safest bets in sports history.
Trout, who's currently on the disabled list following thumb surgery, became just the third player to accumulate 50 career WAR at the age of 25 earlier this year. The two-time American League MVP is also the youngest player ever to record 150 home runs and 150 stolen bases.
