2nd sports hernia surgery to end Seager’s season

SEATTLE — Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager will undergo surgery to repair a sports hernia, ending the All-Star shortstop’s third season with the team, general manager Chris Young said Thursday.

Seager was examined by doctors in Arizona earlier this week and was expected to undergo the procedure Friday, Young said. It’s the second sports hernia surgery for Seager in the past 12 months, this one on the opposite side of his abdomen from where the first surgery was done.

“Obviously a tough decision but with where we are at this point in the season, felt like it was a prudent decision in order for him to make a full recovery, have a strong offseason and be ready for spring training,” Young said ahead of the first of four games against the Mariners.

Seager was put on the 10-day injured list on Sept. 4 because of right hip discomfort that he had been dealing with for about a month.

The reigning World Series MVP sat out almost all of spring training after surgery in January to repair a sports hernia. Last week, Seager said he hoped to play again this season but was also aware he would need a full offseason to get ready for 2025.

“You can’t miss two offseasons,” Seager said. “You’ve got to be healthy and get back into the work and get back into shape. Didn’t really have any buildup last year coming into the season. It’s something that you need to have.”

Seager hit .278 with 30 home runs and 74 RBIs in 123 games. He reached 30 homers for the third season in a row since signing a 10-year, $325 million free agent contract with Texas.

After his brief spring training, Seager had only two homers and eight RBIs in his first 29 regular-season games. But the 30-year-old hit .296 with 27 homers and 66 RBIs since May 3.

“Corey was playing through some discomfort and he’s so important to us and our future, to ask him to continue to play and finish out the season in pain where he could compromise himself or make himself worse, it made no sense,” Young said. “The right decision here was to go ahead and have the operation and make a full recovery.”