Mike Trout home run daily: First inning strikes again

Welcome to the Mike Trout home run daily, where we remember every single home run hit by the Angels superstar, one game at a time. Today’s random number generator landed us on June 3, 2015, the finale of a 10-game homestand against the Rays in Anaheim.

Trout hit 12 of his 41 home runs that season in the first inning, including this one to center field, over the hedges on the second pitch he saw from Nate Karns.

That solo shot was the 14th home run of the season for Trout, and the 112th of his career. It started the scoring for the Angels, who built a 4-0 lead into the fifth inning, when Tampa Bay rallied for five runs against Hector Santiago.

The Angels rallied to tie in the ninth inning, and Trout came to the plate with two outs with a runner on second base, but was intentionally walked, one of two walks in the game for Trout. Albert Pujols grounded out to end the inning, stranding both runners.

Kevin Kiermaier homered in the 10th to give the Rays the win.

Trout in 2015 hit .320/.393/.720 against Tampa Bay, with three home runs in six games.