Following Friday’s 3-2 loss in Game 5 of the American League Division Series, Torres announced that he will undergo a procedure to repair a sports hernia on his right side. The Tigers second baseman said the issue has caused him significant pain for most of the second half of the season.
The typical recovery period for core surgery is around two months of rest and rehab.
Despite the discomfort the injury caused, the 28-year-old Torres opted to postpone the surgery so that his downtime fell in the offseason. Torres signed a one-year, $15 million contract with Detroit on Dec. 27. Should the Tigers not extend him a qualifying offer, he will become a free agent five days after the final game of the World Series.
“It was not really good. From the [start of the] second half, I was in a lot of pain,” Torres admitted shortly after the Tigers bowed out of the postseason following the 15-inning loss to the Mariners at T-Mobile Park. “[The trainers and medical staff did] a really good job keeping me playing. It’s not about numbers, it’s about playing every day, and we do whatever we do at the moment to keep playing every day.”
Though the procedure is not expected to interfere with the beginning of Spring Training, Torres’ injury certainly had an impact on his numbers at the plate with the Tigers. He was one of Detroit’s leaders on offense during the first half with a .281 batting average.
That number — and many others — took a significant hit across the board after the All-Star break and culminated in a .235 average in eight postseason games that left many wondering the source of the funk.
Torres went 0-for-6 with a pair of strikeouts and a walk on Friday out of the two-hole.
1st half (84 games): .281/.387/.425, nine home runs, 16 doubles, 45 RBIs, 46 strikeouts
2nd half (61 games): .223/.320/.339, seven home runs, six doubles, 29 RBIs, 55 strikeouts
Postseason (eight games): .235/.316/.382, one home run, two doubles, one RBI, 10 strikeouts
“I’m a player that’s going to do everything for the team, so there’s no excuses,” Torres said. “It was not easy, but I can play with pain, so it’s no big deal.”
