The Los Angeles Angels were walked off by the Oakland Athletics in extra innings on Opening Day, and their star outfielder managed a dubious line for the first time in his otherwise magnificent career.
Mike Trout posted his first-ever 0-for-6 hitting line and failed to reach base.
Despite not reaching base safely in any of his at-bats, Trout struck out only once. For the Angels, the strikeout came in Trout's most pivotal at-bat, though, with two on and two out and the game tied 5-5 in the top of the 11th. The Athletics walked it off in the bottom of the frame on a Marcus Semien line drive to center field that scored Boog Powell.
By the end of the Opening Day tilt against the A's, Trout was worth minus-.252 Win Probability Added or, put alternatively, cost his team 25.2 percent chance of a win, per FanGraphs. Trout has been worth less by WPA twice in his career: an 0-for-4 game against the Cleveland Indians in 2017, and a 1-for-6 performance against the Cincinnati Reds back in 2013.
The 26-year-old center fielder, who completed the 926th game of his career on Thursday, just completed a spring in which he didn't strike out until his 16th Cactus League game. Through 20 games, Trout posted a .306/.404/.531, striking out a total of four times.
