ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Corey Seager was put on the 10-day injured list Wednesday because of right hip discomfort that could end the All-Star shortstop's third season with the Texas Rangers.
The move was made before the Rangers played their series finale against the New York Yankees. Seager didn't play Tuesday night after being the designated hitter in the series opener.
Seager also didn’t play in Friday's series opener against Oakland while dealing with the hip issue. Manager Bruce Bochy said Seager has felt soreness for about a month.
General manager Chris Young said the club didn't have the medical diagnosis to declare Seager's season over with 23 games remaining, but Bochy indicated as much.
“It’s good that we are taking care of it,” Bochy said. “Get this done so he can heal up over the winter and all set to go next spring.”
Young, Bochy and Seager said the decision to go on the IL was influenced by the reigning the World Series MVP missing almost all of spring training after surgery in January to repair a sports hernia.
While saying “I hope so,” when asked if he would play again this season, Seager said he had the offseason in mind with this move.
“You can’t miss two offseasons,” Seager said. “You’ve got to be healthy and get back into the work and get back into shape. Didn’t really have any buildup last year coming into the season. It’s something that you need to have.”
The Rangers have the same concern after their first World Series title helped lead to the late hernia surgery that keep Seager out most of spring training.
“The season went so long for a great reason,” Young said. “And then when Corey’s offseason training began, he felt the discomfort and we were at a point in the offseason where it was late, by no fault of anybody’s, just the nature of the timing.
“This year, if he’s dealing with something and we don’t know what that is yet, to diagnosis and understand what it is, and then prescribe a rehab program, whatever that may be, to make sure he has a normal offseason, is critically important.”
Texas entered the finale of the New York series 8 1/2 games out of the last AL wild card. Seager's absence will mean more time for Josh Smith at shortstop.
Texas promoted outfielder Sandro Fabian from Triple-A Round Rock to take Seager's spot. The Rangers made room for Fabian on the 40-man roster by moving right-hander Jon Gray (right foot) to the 60-day IL.
“I hate saying this, but it's one of the positives of where we are in the standings in September,” Young said. “With an expanded roster, we get a chance to look at some guys and evaluate and determine who can make an impact in 2025 and beyond.”
Seager is hitting .278 with 30 home runs and 74 RBIs in 123 games. He reached 30 homers for the third season in a row since signing his $325 million, 10-year contract with Texas as a free agent.
After his brief spring training, Seager had just two homers and eight RBIs his first 29 regular-season games. But the 30-year-old has hit .296 with 27 homers and 66 RBIs since May 3.
“As good as he is, you’ve got to be somewhat healthy to hit 30 home runs, especially when you look at his start,” Bochy said. “It was awful, and he’ll tell you that. For three months or so, he was healthy.”
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