On Monday night, Texas Rangers third baseman Josh Jung suffered a fractured wrist after getting hit by a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays. It was a devastating blow for Jung and the Rangers without question. Rangers veteran second baseman Marcus Semien addressed Jung's injury after the game.
“He's just going to have to repeat what he did last year,” Semien said, via Bally Sports Southwest. “He came back… and helped us win the World Series. Just gotta stay positive. It's extremely tough luck for him.”
Jung dealt with an injury before spring training but was able to avoid an IL stint and was ready for the regular season. He was in the middle of an excellent game on Monday before suffering the fractured wrist, having gone 3-4 with four RBI and two runs scored.
“Yeah, he's been working hard to get his swing where he wants it to be,” Semien added. “Hopefully when he comes back he continues to produce. But now it's just up to us to cheer him up. It's definitely a tough time for him, depressing, whatever you call it… You never want to be in that situation but we will just cheer him up.”
Rangers depth will be of utmost importance after Josh Jung injury
Semien was then asked about the Rangers' depth and how important it is for the team to have players on the roster who can come up and play when injuries occur. On Tuesday, it was revealed that Texas promoted former first-round pick Justin Foscue to the big league team, via Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Again, Semien was asked the question before news of Foscue's promotion was revealed. Still, he addressed how important depth is for the team.
“It's going to happen,” Semien said. “That's why we have the depth that we have. You have to prepare for these kinds of things. This was a freak thing. We have a ton of talent in this system, ton of guys that work hard who are fully capable of starting in this league. So next man up.”
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy also shared a message for Jung after learning of the injury.
“Bad news with Josh, he's got a fractured wrist. I just feel horrible,” Bochy said, via Bally Sports Southwest. “He's had such tough luck on this end. It puts a damper on this win, especially the way he was playing… He will be back.”
Jung, 26, finished fourth in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2023 after slashing .266/.315/.467/.781 and getting selected to the AL All-Star team. He was limited to 122 games due to injury but still hit 23 home runs, 25 doubles, and recorded 70 RBI.
Jung was off to a fast start in 2024 for the Rangers, hitting .412/.474/.941/1.415 across 19 plate appearances. The Rangers will lean on their depth for now amid Jung's injury, though.
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