The Red Sox third baseman has a torn ligament in his right thumb that will require surgery, The Boston Globe's Peter Abraham reports, via Twitter. It would seem that this development makes the potential trade with the Rangers unlikely.
A trade involving Lowell and the Rangers was first reported on Dec. 10, but three days later, it was reported that a thumb injury could hold the deal up. On Monday, reports surfaced that Lowell may need thumb surgery to repair the injury.
The Rangers would have sent catcher Max Ramirez to the Red Sox in exchange for Lowell with the Red Sox agreeing to pay $9 million of the $12 million remaining on Lowell's contract for 2010.
