The Los Angeles Angels fell one win shy of extending their season, leaving Mike Trout in denial.
"Obviously you want to make the playoffs, but in a couple weeks, I'll probably look back at it," a dejected Trout said postgame. "Right now, it hasn't sunk in yet that the season's over. You're with this group of guys for a long time, you bond together, you're a big family. Now it's time for the offseason."
The Angels were routed 9-2 by the Texas Rangers in their regular-season finale, leaving them on the outside looking in once the dust settled Sunday. They could have forced a Monday showdown for the second American League wild-card spot with the Houston Astros - who fell 5-3 to the Arizona Diamondbacks - had they pulled out a victory.
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The Angels went an incredible 20-10 down the stretch to thrust themselves into playoff contention. They were one game below .500 heading into action Sept. 1 and 7 1/2 games back in the AL West.
"Can't say how proud I am of this group," Trout added. "We fought. We could've put our heads down, easily, in August. We gave ourselves a chance."
Trout turned in another monster campaign despite his team's shortcomings, hitting .299/.402/.590 with 41 homers and 90 RBIs in 159 games. He has a realistic shot at a second consecutive AL MVP award, though Toronto's Josh Donaldson appears to be the front-runner after leading the Blue Jays to an AL East title.
Los Angeles has now missed the playoffs in five of the past six seasons.