The Rangers will be forced to play without one of their top contributors for almost the rest of the regular season.
Rangers third baseman Josh Jung will undergo surgery on a broken left thumb and is expected to miss the next six weeks, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reported before the club's series opener in Oakland.
Texas placed Jung on the 10-day injured list and recalled infielder Jonathan Ornelas from Triple-A Round Rock.
If Jung were to miss six weeks, he'd return in time to play in the club's final four series before a potential postseason run.
"It's unfortunate. I feel for Josh, most importantly. He's having a phenomenal year and has worked so hard to be in this position," Rangers general manager Chris Young said Monday on the 'GBag Nation' on 105.3 The Fan. "It's tough, but this is what good teams do. We have a lot of depth in our organization. A lot of depth on our 40-man roster. ... At some point, we hope to have Josh back and hopefully, it'll be at a good time where he provides an added boost to us down the home stretch at the end."
Jung was injured in the sixth inning of the Rangers' 6-0 win over the Marlins when a sharp liner off the bat of Miami outfielder Jorge Soler hit his glove hand. Jung couldn't catch the ball but recovered in time to pick it up, step on third, and throw out the runner at second to complete the double play.
"It's unfortunate. It does stink. I feel for Josh, most importantly. He's having a phenomenal year and has worked so hard to be in this position," Rangers general manager Chris Young said Monday on the 'GBag Nation' on 105.3 The Fan. "It's tough, but this is what good teams do. We have a lot of depth in our organization. A lot of depth on our 40-man roster. ... At some point, we hope to have Josh back and hopefully, it'll be at a good time where he provides an added boost to us down the home stretch at the end."
Jung leads all rookies in home runs (22) and RBI (67).
