Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager underwent sports hernia surgery on Tuesday. Rangers general manager Chris Young told reporters, including MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, that the club is “hopeful” Seager will be ready to play come Opening Day. Young added that the concern level isn’t very high.
Young explained to Jeff Wilson of Rangers Today that Seager first suffered the injury during the postseason. At the time, it was agreed upon that the best course of action was for him to get rest. Clearly that didn’t do the trick — at least not to the desired extent — leading to Tuesday’s operation.
Seager, 29, is the reigning World Series Most Valuable Player Award recipient. He’s coming off a career-best season in other respects, too, having hit .327/.390/.623 (170 OPS+) with 33 home runs and 96 RBI. His contributions were worth an estimated 6.9 Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball-Reference.
Seager is entering the third year of his 10-year, $325 million pact with the Rangers. He’s made the All-Star Game in both of his seasons in town. He also won a Silver Slugger Award last year and finished second in American League Most Valuable Player Award voting behind Shohei Ohtani. (Teammate and double-play partner Marcus Semien finished third in MVP voting.)
The Rangers seem unlikely to make a notable addition to their infield even if Seager does begin the year on the injured list. Texas could turn instead to either Ezequiel Duran or Josh H. Smith. Duran, in particular, has experience serving as Seager’s backup plan. He had a good season himself in 2023, posting a 106 OPS+ in 122 games.
The Rangers are scheduled to begin the 2024 regular season at home on Thursday, March 28 against the Chicago Cubs.
