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Anthony Rendon has had a rough time of it since signing his big free-agent deal with the Los Angeles Angels after the 2019 season, struggling at the plate while appearing in just 157 games from 2020 to 2022 due to a variety of health issues. He was enjoying a bit of a bounce-back year so far in 2023, hitting .301 in the middle of the Halos’ lineup — only for the injury bug to rear its head yet again.
Anthony Rendon injury update
June 3 Update — Rendon has done a good job of dodging reporters when they try to get info on his potential return timeline. Manager Phil Nevin said that Rendon could return in the upcoming series against the Chicago Cubs that starts on June 6.
May 15 — After missing the last two games with groin tightness, L.A. placed Rendon on the 10-day IL on Monday afternoon. Livan Soto was called up from Double-A to take his place on the roster.
Anthony Rendon is going on the IL with a left groin strain. Livan Soto was called up from Double-A.
— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) May 15, 2023
Chad Wallach was also activated from the concussion IL.
The team has yet to offer any sort of prognosis, but Rendon at least is hopeful that it’s not too serious. If it is, it would be devastating to an Angels team desperate to make a postseason push — and now has a big hole to fill in the heart of its lineup behind Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. If there’s a silver lining here, it’s that Jared Walsh seems to be nearing a return, which will allow Gio Urshela to slide back over to third base while Rendon is out.
This is yet another bad break in a string of them since he arrived on the West Coast. The third baseman established himself as one of the premier two-way players in the game during his time with the Washington Nationals, notching a .874 OPS, an All-Star nod and, of course, a World Series ring in D.C. He cashed in on that in a big way in his first foray into free agency, signing a monster seven-year, $245 million deal with L.A. ahead of the 2020 season. He was his typical self in that pandemic-shortened campaign, slashing .286/.418/.497, only for ailments to his groin, knee, hamstring, hip and finally wrist to derail each of the next two years.