The San Diego Padres have had an up-and-down 2024 campaign to this point. After the completion of games on Wednesday, they are 26-26 and in second place in the NL West, seven games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. And were delivered some rough news about Xander Bogaerts.
Making up ground in the standings is going to become difficult, as their lineup suffered a major loss this week. All-Star second baseman Xander Bogaerts is going to be sidelined indefinitely after breaking his shoulder.
He injured his shoulder when diving for a ground ball in the first game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves on Monday. After being evaluated by the training staff, he was escorted off the field. Immediately, he knew something was wrong.
“Soon as I caught the ball, I heard a crack,” Bogaerts said. “In the end, that’s what it was. A crack. I pray one [month of recovery]. Depends on how quick it heals. I’ll do everything possible.”
The first round of testing came back negative, which provided some optimism on the situation. But, after more imaging was done, the fracture was revealed. It was certainly a disappointing development for Xander Bogaerts and the San Diego Padres.
“Not as good [of news] as we clearly would have hoped, especially after the initial imaging,” manager Mike Shildt said.
A positive to come out of the testing is that there is no labrum tear. Surgery will not be required at this time, as the bone will need some time to heal. While Bogaerts is hopeful to return to the lineup by the last summer, Shildt provided no update on when a return could occur.
“I’m not a big timetable guy,” Shildt said. “Obviously he’ll be on the sidelines for a period of time. It’s really impossible to say how long. We’re still gathering information.”
Thus far in 2024, Xander Bogaerts is hitting .219 with four home runs and 14 RBIs. The San Diego Padres will likely turn to Luis Arraez as their everyday second baseman until Bogaerts can return to the lineup.
Arraez was acquired from the Miami Marlins earlier in the season via trade. One of the best contact hitters in the game, he will be used in the field more than the Padres anticipated when the deal was made with Bogaerts sidelined for a few weeks.
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