Opinion

It's the decision the Los Angeles Angels don't want to make. And by golly, it's the kind of decision no team should ever have to make.

But whether the Angels like it or not, trading Mike Trout continues to look less like the nuclear option and more like the only option.

It's one thing to break out. It's another to stick around.

That's a lesson some members of the impressive 2016 MLB rookie class will inevitably learn the hard way. Baseball history is littered with the husks of once-promising careers that withered on the vine.

The Houston Astros are dead, long live the Houston Astros.

OK, we should amend that: The Astros seemed dead after going 7-17 in April. Since May 1, however, they've gone 30-19. And with a sweep-sealing 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday at Minute Maid Park, they poked their heads above .500 at 37-36.

Wondering what kind of world we're living in when Cleveland is a championship city and the Miami Marlins surge ahead of the New York Mets in the NL East….

1. Why the Yankees Could Influence the Cubs and Nationals in October

In May, the Chicago Cubs walked reigning National League MVP Bryce Harper a Big Gulp-sized 13 times (in 19 plate appearances) in a four-game series, including six times in the 13-inning series finale.

There is no such thing as a perfect team in baseball. Each and every one of MLB's 30 franchises—contenders and non-contenders alike—has at least one glaring weakness. Many of those teams will look to address that weakness before the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline arrives.

When it comes to starting pitching in the National League, embarrassment of riches is an embarrassing understatement.

We're going to throw out a bevy of numbers to drive that point home, but here's a good one to start with: four.

That's how many Senior Circuit hurlers boast ERAs under 2.00 entering play Wednesday. It's also the number of pitchers in both leagues who've accomplished the feat over a full season in the past 10 years.

There's a two-headed monster rearing its visage in San Francisco. And while tourists winding down Lombard Street can rest easy, opposing hitters might want to run for their lives.

We're talking, of course, about Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto, the Giants' deadly lefty/righty duo. As we roll toward the All-Star break, they've emerged as baseball's best pitching twosome.

SALEM, Va. — Children are everywhere.

Some are running on the grass behind the first base stands at Salem Memorial Baseball Stadium. A handful are playing whiffle ball inside a miniature version of Fenway Park, complete with a diminutive Green Monster, near the main entrance. Others are eating ice cream and hot dogs.

A few are even watching baseball.

In the first week of June, James Shields was traded from the San Diego Padres to the Chicago White Sox. On Sunday, the Los Angeles Dodgers sent former top pitching prospect Zach Lee to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for infielder Chris Taylor.

Our mission as the dog days of summer begin is to construct an MLB superteam using the top teammate tandems from around the league.

The team's roster will be built using the following five groups of teammates: