POST HYPE SLEEPER: los angeles angels of anaheim

(To be read in the voice of Tim Kurkjian)

Happy 21st Birthday, Mike Trout.

To think only a year ago you were little more than a prized prospect. A mere twinkle in the eye of the baseball intelligentsia. You had a proverbial "cup of tea" in 2011, but Papa Mike wasn't ready to take the training wheels off just yet. Back to the Minors you went.

With Albert Pujols and the rest of the Angels struggling, they brought you back up to the Big Leagues one month into the 2012 season. This time, though, there was no need for a break-in period. This time, you meant business. Serious business.

Here you are, a grown man 88 games into the season, leading the universe in runs (87), stolen bases (36), WAR (6.9), Icelandic frost giants slain (3) and even the weird stats like wRC+ (185).

To celebrate, you hit your 20th home run of the season, giving you a shot at joining Eric Davis and Barry Bonds as only the third player in MLB history to finish with a 30-50 season (again, after missing nearly all of April). As it stands right now, you have the highest OPS+ (183) in an age 20 season ever. That's higher than names like Jimmie Foxx, Eddie Matthews, Rogers Hornsby, Ty Cobb, Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams.

It's party time.

May the next 21 years be full of happiness and free of statistical regression. Here's to you, Mikey. What do you get the kid who has everything? Your geodes are in the mail!

"If he's not the best player in the game by the end of this season, he will be by the end of next season."

ESPN's Buster Olney dropped this gem on us last Friday, quoting an anonymous veteran talent evaluator's assessment of Angels rookie Mike Trout, setting off a Twitter firestorm.

Superlatives aside, we cannot ignore the ~~great~~ monster season that the Salvelinus of Swat is having in Anaheim. The numbers aren't obvious -- he doesn't have 20 home runs or 20 stolen bases (not yet) -- but his impact is undeniable. The Angels sat at a disappointing 6-14 before Trout was called up to the Bigs. With Trout atop the lineup (and this Pujols guy finally coming around), the Angels have since gone 18-11.

Trout in the leadoff spot is a nightmare for pitchers facing an Albert Pujols led offense. Heading into tonight's game, Trout is seeing 4.26 pitches per plate appearance, placing him at 16th in the league (minimum 100 AB). He's grasped the concept of leadoff hitter early, working deep counts, not chasing pitches off the plate. Trout holds a .367 on-base percentage, and once he's on base, he's running. Trout is now 8/10 in stolen bases, numbers which might even be modest at this point, as the same veteran talent evaluator quoted by Olney echoed sentiments that Trout may very well be the "fastest player in the game."

Speed isn't the only important element in Trout's game, of course. Living up to the 5-Tool hype, Trout holds a .491 slugging percentage, good enough for third among all rookies (behind fellow wunderkind Bryce Harper and Cardinals slugger Matt Carpenter). Eleven of his 32 hits are of the extra base variety, including four home runs. You don't want to put Trout on base, but you also can't give in over the plate. Basically, he'll punish you either way.

When Trout puts it all together, he has a day like this:

In case you missed it, let's take a look at that infield single:

(via SB Nation)

Right now, even in the instances when Trout doesn't hit a line drive, he's making up for it with his extraordinary wheels. In the Majors and Minors combined, Trout owns a career .383 BABIP. While a high BABIP (batting average on balls in play) usually indicates a a certain amount of luck for hitters, Trout, like Ichiro before him, records high BABIP numbers thanks to his ability to put the ball in play and run like a bat out of hell. If he continues to put up BABIP numbers like this, he'll be number two all time, sitting right above none other than Ty Cobb.

Trout isn't elite at everything. According to Tater Trot Tracker, he doesn't run the bases too fast or too slow when he hits home runs. He's very average. Adam Rosales isn't impressed.

A lot of baseball remains to be played in 2012, but if Trout stays consistent, the Angels will look like a dark horse team entering the playoffs. Not only is he the future of the franchise, he might be their most important player right now, playing the indispensable Kato to Albert Pujols' very expensive Britt Reid/Green Hornet. All of this coming from a guy who was born only two months before Marky Mark and Funky Bunch took over the Billboard charts.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Trout is a man. He's 20.