Angels’ Anthony Rendon to have wrist surgery at the end of the season – Orange County Register

SEATTLE — Anthony Rendon’s third season with the Angels has ended just as prematurely as his second.

The Angels announced Friday that the third baseman will undergo surgery to repair a tendon subluxation in his right wrist, which will require four to six months of rehabilitation.

Last year, Rendon underwent hip surgery in August that cost him the end of the season.

“We have a great group of guys here and I didn’t want to do that two years in a row,” Rendon said on Friday. “Last year we were out. This year I love this group of guys who fight with them every day. So I just kept trying to assert myself and fight back as best I could, and my body kept saying no.”

Rendon, who is in the third year of a seven-year, $235 million contract, has only survived one season so far and that was the abridged 2020 season. He has only played 155 games over three seasons. Though he finished 10th in the 2020 American League MVP poll, the past two seasons have been injury-related disappointments. He hit .235 with .710 OPS over the two seasons, including .228 with .707 OPS in 45 games this season.

Rendon said in spring training that he felt like “night and day” as he battled the lower-body issues that robbed him of his performance and playing time in 2021, but it wasn’t long until 2022 before that season was lost as well.

Rendon said he felt wrist pain during his third shot on May 8, the day his RBI singles at the end of the ninth inning capped a win over the Washington Nationals, his former team.

Senior athletic coach Mike Frostad said Rendon’s injury was diagnosed early on as a tendon subluxation, but there is precedent for players who play with the condition and can have surgery in the offseason.

Rendon played with the condition for a few weeks, but after the May 26 game against the Toronto Blue Jays, which was the second loss in a 14-game losing streak, it became too much.

Continued treatment brought good results and Rendon made it back into the lineup last Friday. He said he was “great” during last weekend’s series against the New York Mets, but “it flared up again” on Tuesday against the Dodgers.

Over the next two days, the Angels and Rendon tried various drugs and treatments to get him back on the field.

“Yesterday was the last straw,” Rendon said. “We tried to go through a new routine. It was kind of the last thing we’re going to do to find out if I’m able to play. Before the game. I was trying to see if I could make the lineup. And then we did a few more things during the season and it just didn’t work.”

Rendon also said he didn’t want to keep trying to hide the pain to play.

“Surgery is the only way it can be fixed,” he said. “There was a point where I kept increasing the dosage of the stuff I was taking. I didn’t feel comfortable doing it.”

When the decision was finally made Thursday night to let the season operate at the end, it was a huge blow to a team that has been reeling for a month. The Angels finally had all of their key players back in the lineup Tuesday, but it didn’t even last the whole game.

“I feel terrible for him,” said interim manager Phil Nevin. “He wants to be out here in a bad, bad way. But now that he’s (operated) his convalescence will see him have a good normal off-season and be ready for next spring. I know without a doubt how hungry he will be next year. If you know Anthony Rendon, he will be back next spring and will be more than ready to go.”

Meanwhile, the Angels will try to piece things together with Jack Mayfield, Matt Duffy, Tyler Wade and Luis Rengifo. All can take third, although none are an everyday third baseman.

Infielder Michael Stefanic, always a solid attacking player with the Minors, could eventually provide some help but he is currently on Triple-A’s injured list.

REST THE MVPS

Nevin decided to release Shohei Ohtani on Friday after throwing six innings Thursday night. Nevin said he went to Ohtani and told him he was going instead of Ohtani saying he needed a break.

The Angels have a doubleheader on Saturday and Nevin wants Ohtani to be the DH for both games. Nevin said he’s also aware of the fact that the Angels will no longer have the built-in Ohtani days off this season that the schedule called for when they played at National League parks last year.

Ohtani played in 63 of the Angels’ first 65 games, starting in 61 of them as a pitcher or DH. Nevin said Ohtani will serve next Wednesday, which is conveniently ahead of the Angels’ next scheduled day off.

By giving Ohtani a day off on Friday, Nevin also had the opportunity to have Mike Trout start at DH, giving Trout a chance to bounce back a week from his groin injury.

With Ohtani now DHing both games on Saturday, Trout will either have to play both games in midfield or sit out one game entirely.

“I’m nervous about cheering for him twice tomorrow but we’ll see how he feels in the morning,” Nevin said.

Nevin conceded that seeding either player is not ideal.

“I know what it looks like, but the long term for these two guys is more important to all of us,” Nevin said.

OVERLOOKING UPTON

Justin Upton, who was due out by the Angels at the end of spring training, happened to return to the big leagues against the Angels on Friday night. The Mariners, who signed Upton last month, called him from Triple-A and put him in the lineup Friday night.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the game, Upton said he wasn’t surprised the Angels let him go.