Cleveland Indians: Michael Brantley To Have Season Ending Surgery
The season is over for Cleveland Indians’ outfielder Michael Brantley who had been attempting a comeback from offseason shoulder surgery. It was announced Saturday afternoon that he now needs season-ending surgery on his arm.
Michael Brantley’s nightmarish 2016 season has come to a merciful end. Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona told reporters ahead of their game with the Angels on Saturday that Brantley will have season ending surgery on his injured right arm. He also told the media that the Indians will release more details about the surgery after its conclusion on Monday.
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The 29 year-old Brantley originally injured his right shoulder when he attempted a diving play in the outfield at Target Field in Minnesota. He underwent surgery in November to repair a torn labrum and, at the time, was expected to miss about four to five months. Unfortunately, the recovery was not as smooth as the Indians and Brantley had hoped because due to a series of setbacks with his shoulder, and now because of a biceps injury in the same arm, Brantley’s season has come to an end after only 11 games.
Brantley made his season debut on April 25, but he has not played in a Major League game since early May and in the 11 games in which he did appear he batted .231/.279/.282 (44 wRC+) with nine hits, seven RBI and zero home runs in 43 plate appearances.
Luckily for the Indians, they have not missed a beat all season and are still in the lead in the American League Central division by five games (as of Saturday). Rookie Tyler Naquin and Jose Ramirez have both filled in nicely for the missing Brantley. Naquin is batting .306/.372/.581 (154 wRC+) with 13 home runs and 36 RBI. Ramirez is batting .313/.368/.456 (124 wRC+) with eight home runs and 62 RBI.
Brantley’s surgery will take place in Dallas. Dr. Keith Meister who first diagnosed Brantley with biceps tendinitis in late June will perform the procedure. Dr. Meister administered a cortisone shot at the time of the diagnosis, but after attempting a minor league rehab stint, Brantley was in too much pain to continue playing.
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Brantley was an MVP-type player before his injury. Hopefully this latest surgery will be a successful one for Brantley.