Former Bruin Facing Second Shoulder Surgery

Former UCLA Bruin Garrett Mitchell is scheduled to undergo shoulder surgery on Tuesday, July 1.

And it's just another injury that Mitchell has had to deal with in his MLB career.

This will be the outfielder’s second shoulder surgery, the first being a torn labrum in 2023. But apparently, Mitchell suffered this latest injury because a few of the anchors from that first surgery were dislodged during a rehab game while playing for Triple-A Nashville.

Not only that, during spring training of 2024, Mitchell suffered a broken left hand that forced him to miss three months of the season.

So it’s been really tough luck for him. He’s been in MLB since 2022 sparingly, and he’s never had a season where he played in more than 70 games — and that came in 2024.

Mitchell had a decent career with the Bruins, where he suited up for two seasons, and then in his third, COVID-19 shut down any chance to play longer.

It was then that Mitchell was drafted in the first round, 20th overall, in the 2020 MLB Draft.

When he’s at his best, he’s not supposed to be a power hitter. You’ll get some solid hits, clutch moments, and exceptional speed on the basepaths — but you’ll get a homer out of him every now and then.

During Game 2 of the 2024 National League Wild Card, Mitchell was the catalyst in helping Milwaukee beat the Mets, hitting a two-run home run to take a 5–3 lead in the bottom of the eighth.

Along with that, his defense is revered, and it’s only gotten better as time has gone on. Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel discussed how Mitchell’s defensive impact was one of the best on the Brewers last season:

“[Blake] Perkins, a Gold Glove finalist last season, has a case as one of the truly elite center fielders in the game… [Garrett] Mitchell was even better on a per-inning basis than Perkins, at least according to some metrics. He was worth six defensive runs saved compared to Perkins’ eight in roughly one-third of the playing time.”

Better than a Gold Glove finalist? It just shows the type of impact that Mitchell can have on the field. But can he stay healthy?

He’s starting to toe the line of “damaged goods,” even if he has all-world talent.

After this upcoming surgery, there’s a chance that Mitchell can come back at the end of the season. But after that, he may be running out of time to become a full-time Major League Baseball player.

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