The following season in 1984, he stayed in the Cubs rotation, pitching along with Rick Sutcliffe, Dennis Eckersley, and Lee Smith. They led the Cubs to 96 victories and their first trip to the playoffs in 39 years. Steve pitched the Cubs home opener on April 13 against the New York Mets, pitching a complete game and allowing just two hits in the 11–2 victory.[2] On May 30, Trout took a no-hitter into the eighth inning against the Atlanta Braves that was broken up by Albert Hall.[3]
Trout finished the season with a 13–7 record in 31 starts, posting a 3.41 ERA. Steve pitched effectively in the 1984 National League Championship Series against the San Diego Padres, going 8.1 innings for the victory in Game 2, which put the Cubs one victory away from their first World Series since 1945. He pitched in relief in the series-deciding Game 5 in San Diego, which the Cubs lost.[4]
Trout started strong in 1985 with a 6–1 record through June 8, until ulnar nerve problems caused him to miss time on the disabled list, as he was only able to make nine starts for the remainder of the season[5] Trout was traded in 1987 to the New York Yankees, for Bob Tewksbury, Rich Scheid, and Dean Wilkins.
New York Yankees
Trout's acquisition by the New York Yankees in a mid-season trade proved to be a disastrous trade for the Yankees. Though his last two starts with the Cubs were complete game shutouts, and his ERA was one of the best in the National League, with the Yankees he proved unable to locate the strike zone. He walked 37 batters and threw nine wild pitches in 46 innings and lasted an average of only four innings in his nine Yankee starts. The Yankees traded Trout to Seattle after the 1987 season, paying the Mariners over one million dollars to offset some of Trout's substantial salary.
Trout runs a baseball clinic from his home in Venice, Florida, from November through April. It is open to all ages.[4] In 2002, he authored a book about his and his father Dizzy Trout's baseball lives called Home Plate: The Journey of the Most Flamboyant Father and Son Pitching Combination in Major League History.
Moloka'i High School in Hawaii hired Trout in March 2010 to be its head coach. Trout answered an ad in the local newspaper.[7]
He started the Chicago-based Trout Baseball Academy in 2015 and conducts baseball camps for children throughout the year.[8]
Trout recently co-wrote a children's illustration book called Loosey-Goosey Baseball that is available for purchase on his website.[9]
According to the Chicago Sun-Times in 2015, Trout sued a North Side baseball camp claiming the camp unlawfully used his name in the source code of their website for monetary gains.[10]
