ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout will have surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee, sidelining the three-time AL MVP indefinitely.
The Angels believe Trout will be able to return this season, general manager Perry Minasian said while announcing the injury Tuesday.
Trout is batting .220 with a major league-leading 10 homers, 14 RBIs and six stolen bases this year, but he will be sidelined by a major injury for the fourth consecutive season. The Angels put Trout on the 10-day injured list and signed veteran outfielder Kevin Pillar to a one-year, $740,000 contract.
Trout had an MRI after playing in the Angels' 6-5 victory over Philadelphia on Monday. The outfielder fought back tears while describing the pain that gradually crept up on him after the game.
“It's crazy, because I look back and I don't even know when I did it,” Trout said. “I was kind of telling myself, ‘Maybe I just banged it on something and I didn’t realize it.’ And then after the game, getting treatment on it, it was really sore. The plan was just to see how I felt in the morning. If I woke up and it was sore, just get it looked at. That was the plan. Last night was tough for me to sleep. It was just aching all night.”
Trout's latest injury is another major blow to the Angels, who are off to an 11-18 start in their first season since Shohei Ohtani's free-agent departure.
Los Angeles also lost Anthony Rendon indefinitely to a torn hamstring earlier this month. The $245 million third baseman also has been sidelined for major portions of the past four consecutive seasons by an array of injuries.
Trout and Rendon are by far the Angels' two highest-paid players, each making more than $37 million this season.
Mickey Moniak took Trout's normal starting job in center field when the Angels hosted the Phillies again Tuesday night.
The 32-year-old Trout won his three MVP awards during a dominant decade of play in the 2010s, but the formerly durable outfielder has been bedeviled by injuries since 2021.
He missed all but 36 games of the 2021 season with a strained calf, and he missed several weeks of the 2022 season with a back injury. Trout then broke a bone in his hand last season, missing all but one game after July 3.
Trout said he has never had health problems with his knees.
“I’ve talked to a couple of guys in there that’s had” meniscus repair,” Trout said while standing outside the Angels’ clubhouse. “It’s a pretty simple procedure. I’ll have it right away and get back as fast as I can, (but) this is tough.”
The Angels signed Pillar on Tuesday, one day after designating veteran Aaron Hicks for assignment. Hicks, the longtime Yankees outfielder, batted .140 with one homer in 18 games for the Halos.
Pillar batted .160 in 17 games this season for the White Sox, who designated him for assignment last Friday. The Angels are the ninth major league team in the last six seasons for the 35-year-old Pillar, a Southern California native.
The Angels also selected the contract of left-handed reliever Amir Garrett and sent right-hander Davis Daniel back to Triple-A Salt Lake.
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Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Mike Trout, left, speaks with third base coach Eric Young Sr. during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout runs after a single during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Monday, April 29, 2024, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli officials seized a camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press in southern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the news organization of violating a new media law by providing images to Al Jazeera.
The Qatari satellite channel is among thousands of clients that receive live video feeds from the AP and other news organizations. The AP denounced the move.
“The Associated Press decries in the strongest terms the actions of the Israeli government to shut down our longstanding live feed showing a view into Gaza and seize AP equipment,” said Lauren Easton, vice president of corporate communications at the news organization. “The shutdown was not based on the content of the feed but rather an abusive use by the Israeli government of the country’s new foreign broadcaster law. We urge the Israeli authorities to return our equipment and enable us to reinstate our live feed immediately so we can continue to provide this important visual journalism to thousands of media outlets around the world.”
Officials from the Communications Ministry arrived at the AP location in the southern town of Sderot on Tuesday afternoon and seized the equipment. They handed the AP a piece of paper, signed by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, alleging it was violating the country’s foreign broadcaster law.
Shortly before the equipment was seized, it was broadcasting a general view of northern Gaza. The AP complies with Israel’s military censorship rules, which prohibit broadcasts of details like troops movements that could endanger soldiers. The live shot has generally shown smoke rising over the territory.
The seizure followed a verbal order Thursday to cease the live transmission — which the news organization refused to do.
“In accordance with the government decision and the instruction of the communications minister, the communications ministry will continue to take whatever enforcement action is required to limit broadcasts that harm the security of the state,” the ministry said in a statement.
Israeli officials used the law to close down the offices of the Qatar-based broadcaster on May 5 as well as confiscating the channel’s equipment, banning its broadcasts, and blocking its websites.
Israel has long had a rocky relationship with Al Jazeera, accusing it of bias against the country. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called it a “terror channel” that spreads incitement.
Al Jazeera is one of the few international news outlets that has remained in Gaza throughout the war, broadcasting scenes of airstrikes and overcrowded hospitals and accusing Israel of massacres.
The war in Gaza began with a Hamas attack in Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage. More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed since then, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.
Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
In this image from video, Israeli officials seize AP video equipment from an apartment block in Sderot, Southern Israel, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Israeli officials seized the camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press in southern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the news organization of violating the country's new ban on Al Jazeera. Shortly before the equipment was seized, it was broadcasting a general view of northern Gaza. (AP Photo/Josphat Kasire)
AP video equipment is laid on the floor of an apartment block in Sderot, Southern Israel, shortly before it was seized by Israeli officials, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Israeli officials seized the camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press in southern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the news organization of violating the country's new ban on Al Jazeera. Shortly before the equipment was seized, it was broadcasting a general view of northern Gaza. (AP Photo/Josphat Kasire)
A screenshot taken from AP video showing a general view of northern Gaza as seen from Southern Israel, before it was seized by Israeli officials on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Israeli officials seized a camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press in southern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the news organization of violating the country’s new ban on Al Jazeera. Shortly before the equipment was seized, it was broadcasting a general view of northern Gaza. (AP Photo)
