Mike Trout really wanted the ball to commemorate his first hit of the year (finally)

Ladies and gentlemen, you can uncross your fingers. You can stop dropping pennies into wishing wells and knocking on every piece of wood you see. The wait is over.

After beginning the season 0-for-8, going two entire games without reaching base, Mike Trout recorded his first hit of the 2016 season when he scooted a pitch into left field during the first inning of Thursday's Rangers-Angels game.

It had no doubt been a tense week for the former AL MVP and perennial All-Star. Before this year, Trout recorded a hit in every Opening Day game he played in. In fact, not since 2012 (when he came up at the end of April) did Trout start his season with two hitless games.

No wonder he really wanted the ball to commemorate such a milestone:

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It was a moment of triumph not unlike Hercules becoming immortal again while swimming through the sea of souls.

And Trout added another single in the eighth inning. So, realizing he had regained his powers and was once again Mike Trout -- "We were not going to let Trout beat us," Jeff Bannister said after the game -- the Rangers intentionally walked him in the ninth inning. Only that didn't quite work out, either.