Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager exited Wednesday’s contest against the Detroit Tigers (GameTracker) in the bottom of the second inning because of hamstring tightness that flared up as he ran the bases. Seager was replaced by fellow infielder Ezequiel Duran, who was subsequently caught stealing to end the frame.
Seager incurred the injury after singling to left field against Detroit lefty Joey Wentz, scoring a run in the process. As he approached first base, he reached back and grabbed at the back of his thigh. Here’s a look at the play in its full-motion picture glory:
The official diagnosis and severity of Seager’s injury is to be revealed. It’s perhaps worth noting that Seager could be out of action for several weeks if he did indeed strain his hamstring. Baseball Prospectus’ recovery database suggests players tend to miss about four weeks on average recovering from hamstring strains. Again, though, it’s possible that Seager suffered a different and/or lesser injury that won’t sideline him for close to a month.
Seager, 30, entered Wednesday having hit .269/.359/.472 (138 OPS+) with 13 home runs and 29 runs batted in over his first 56 games this season. His contributions had been worth an estimated 2.4 Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball Reference’s calculations. Seager had been particularly effective as of late, posting a 1.181 OPS over the course of the last four weeks.
The Rangers entered play on Wednesday with a 29-32 record on the year, putting them in second place in the AL West by 5 1/2 games behind the Seattle Mariners. The Rangers are also currently without third baseman Josh Jung, outfielder Evan Carter, and pitchers Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom, Jon Gray and Tyler Mahle because of various injuries — the last thing they need, then, is another lengthy absence from a star player.
