The Texas Rangers sent outfielder Josh Hamilton back to Texas on Wednesday for examination of his left knee after he experienced discomfort in the knee during the team’s first full-squad workout of Spring Training on Tuesday.
Rangers assistant general manager Mike Daly told the press that Hamilton’s knee flared up after he was simulating running the bases on arcs in the outfield. Daly also noted that the drill was not going at full speed.
Hamilton, who underwent knee surgery in June to repair his ACL and other damage in his knee, was cleared by Rangers officials in December to resume baseball related activities. This particular procedure was the 10th career knee surgery for the 35-year-old Hamilton.
Last season, Hamilton didn’t record an official MLB plate appearance after undergoing two separate surgeries in 2015. He recorded only 170 at-bats that season, and tried several different methods to try and get his knee healthy for the 2016 season, but that just never came to fruition.
(Getty Images)
That caused the Rangers to release Hamilton in August, and then sign him to a minor league deal last month with the intention that he could help Texas out at first base after the team let Mitch Moreland leave for the Red Sox in free agency.
Regardless if he plays again or not, Hamilton will still be cashing significant checks in 2017. The Rangers still owe him $2 million in-addition to the $535,000 a minor league deal pays out, but the real story here is what the Los Angeles Angels owe Hamilton.
After paying Hamilton $26.4 million to play just one minor league game last season. the Angels will also be on the hook for paying the former American League MVP that same salary again this season. The Angels agreed to pay for most of Hamilton’s deal when they traded him to the Rangers in 2015 for his second stint with the team.
For his career, Hamilton is .290/.349/.516 hitter. He has sent exactly 200 baseballs over the wall in his career, while also having 701 RBIs and 50 stolen bases.
[twitter-follow screen_name='tony_montalto' show_count='yes']
You must log in to post a comment.