Mike Trout has three American League Most Valuable Player Awards, has won Rookie of the Year and has made the All-Star Game every single year of his eight-year career.

He’s been to the playoffs once.

The Los Angeles Angels aim to change that in 2020. They landed one of the top free-agent prizes in the offseason, bolstered a spotty rotation and secured a manager who has led a team to glory.

The Angels won’t be the favorite in the AL West – that’s the Houston Astros. But in a 60-game regular season, it doesn’t take six months of consistent play to achieve a coveted berth into the postseason. It takes two months. Fringe contenders, as the Angels are considered in 2020, can leap at this opportunity.

At +4000 in the latest World Series odds, the Angels are underdogs in the race for the Commissioner’s Trophy. Don’t be scared off. Here’s why the Angels are worth backing now before their MLB odds shrink.

Lining Up Behind Trout

Trout has been asked to do too much in the Angels’ lineup. He can do a lot, but he can only take up one spot in the order. It’s been an issue for years. He won the AL MVP last season yet the Angels were just 72-90.

The Angels haven’t been shy about throwing money at the problem, but it hasn’t worked in the past. Perhaps this was the offseason the cash went to the right places.

Anthony Rendon, who led the Nationals to the World Series title last year, was brought in on a huge deal to bat behind Trout and offer up the best Nos. 2-3 lineup combo in the majors.

Shohei Ohtani, the AL Rookie of the Year in 2018 and a standout with the bat and in the rotation, is back at full strength after Tommy John surgery and will be behind them at No. 4. Albert Pujols and Justin Upton are behind them, too.

CHECK OUT: Our Ultimate Guide To Betting The 2020 MLB Season

Rolling The Pitching Dice

L.A. overhauled a disappointing starting rotation with medium-risk, high-reward options in Julio Teheran and Dylan Bundy. Teheran started for seven seasons in Atlanta, where his record hovered around .500 but his ERA was consistently under 4.00. Bundy was shellacked at times in Baltimore, but with no run support the pressure was on. He’ll get run support in Anaheim, and his 1.59 ERA and 0.44 WHIP this spring indicates he’s excited for the new challenge.

Top returner and Opening Day starter Andrew Heaney struck out 118 in 95.1 innings last season.

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Angels 2020 World Series Outlook

In charge of putting it all together is Joe Maddon, who made the Rays into low-cost playoff contenders for years and led the Cubs to their only World Series title in the last century. Pitching is a big question mark, but a been-there, done-that manager in Maddon and the best player in the game in Trout leading a potentially ferocious order is a good place to start.

The Astros are the team to beat in the AL West, but the Angels have as good a shot as any to get one of the two wild-card spots. Secure the Angels at +4000 for now at PointsBet: