The Texas Rangers’ cursed August has now officially wiped out their entire $500 million middle infield.
Corey Seager felt abdominal pain before and during Wednesday’s 20-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels that turned out to be appendicitis. He did not fly with the team to Sacramento and was expected to undergo an appendectomy Thursday afternoon in Dallas.
President of Baseball Operations Chris Young said Thursday afternoon the Rangers would not rule Seager out for the season, but “will be without him for a period of time.” Young indicated that the recovery time could be two to three weeks or it could take all of the remaining five weeks of the season. Young was not focused on a true timeline on Thursday as the need for surgery came together quickly.
“Corey did not want to rule out the season, and in fact, he’s been researching athletes who’ve come back from this quickly,” Young said. “I just think it’s unfair to put that on him at this point. The most important thing is to make sure that Corey’s health is right and that he gets through the surgery and that there are no issues stemming from the surgery.”
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Seager, who is in the fourth year of a 10-year, $325 million deal, went 2 for 2 in the win with a home run but left after four innings with the Rangers holding a big lead. At the time, it was assumed the Rangers were just giving him the rest of the night off with the game already in hand. Young said he and manager Bruce Bochy found out at that point that the stomach pain had been getting more severe as the game progressed.
The loss of Seager comes only days after the Rangers announced that second baseman Marcus Semien was, in all likelihood, done for the remainder of the regular season. Semien, in the fourth year of a seven-year, $175 million deal, suffered a fracture in his left foot when he fouled a ball off it in Kansas City last week. He’s been in a walking boot ever since and is expected to wear the boot for at least three more weeks.
In the last week, the Rangers have lost Evan Carter (fractured wrist), Jon Gray (thoracic outlet syndrome), Nathan Eovaldi (rotator cuff strain) and now Seager and Semien. Despite it all, the Rangers have won five of their last six games, and that’s where Young’s head was at when it came to baseball.
“Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us,” Young said. “And we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. Baseball is a funny game. Oftentimes it’s not the most talented teams that win, it’s the teams that get hot at the right times; that bond together. I think in the last week, we’ve shown great resilience. I’m extremely proud of our group and the way they have fought.
“I expect them to continue fighting, and we’ll see what happens. I put no limitations on what a group of guys can do when they believe in each other, they show up on a daily basis and they play for one another. And my hope is that you know for a month we can do that and see where it leads.”
To replace Seager on the active roster, the Rangers selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Dylan Moore from Triple-A Round Rock. Moore, a veteran, had been signed to a minor league deal on Tuesday after being released by Seattle.
Young said, however, that Josh Smith would likely get the majority of playing time at shortstop in Seager’s absence. The Rangers will likely use some combination of Moore, Ezequiel Duran and Cody Freeman at second to replace Semien.
Seager has played in 102 games this season. Even if he returns as quickly as possible, he won’t get to 130. It will be the third straight season Seager has missed at least 30 starts, roughly 20% of the season. When he’s not in the lineup, there is a noticeable difference. The Rangers are 55-47 this year when he plays; 13-20 when he doesn’t.
“Obviously, Corey is extremely impactful for our team, and at this point in the season, with everything we’ve experienced thus far, that’s a tough blow,” Young said. “We’ve obviously had a lot of tough blows the last couple weeks here, but the team has shown tremendous resilience and fight, and our expectation is they continue to demonstrate that.”
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