Josh Hamilton’s 2016 season is over before it even began.
The Texas Rangers outfielder will undergo surgery on his left knee June 8 and miss the rest of the season, the team announced Monday. Hamilton has yet to play in a major league game this season.
Hamilton, who turned 35 on Saturday, had been playing for Texas’ Double-A affiliate recently and was taken out of the lineup because of knee soreness. Unfortunately, the setback is nothing new for Hamilton, who played in just 50 games for the Rangers last season after returning to the club in April 2015 via a controversial trade with the Los Angeles Angels.
The nine-year veteran already had two surgeries on his knees this past offseason, but Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said Hamilton is committed to returning in 2017. Hamilton is in the fourth year of a five-year, $125 million contract, part of which still is being paid by the Angels.
Hamilton is just four seasons removed from hitting 43 homers with Texas in 2012, but his production has dipped significantly since then. He hit .255 with a total of 31 homers in two seasons with Los Angeles, then batted .253 with eight homers in 50 games with the Rangers last season.
Thumbnail photo via Peter Llewellyn/USA TODAY Sports Images
