Texas Rangers Slugger Seeks Injury-Free Season for First Time in Majors

Ask Texas Rangers third baseman Josh Jung if everything is normal after last year’s thumb injury, and he quickly realized he has no point of reference.

“I don’t know what it looked like before,” Jung said earlier this month at Rangers FanFest. “Honestly, who pays attention to their thumbs and is like, ‘That’s weird.’ But now that I have, it looks fabulous.”

Jung suffered a fractured thumb during the first full week of last season, an injury that caused him to have surgery and miss the first half of the season, as the fracture was more extensive than originally thought. But, Jung, sadly, has grown used to that.

In 2023, his first full season, he missed more than a month with a left thumb fracture while trying to field a line drive. In 2022, before his MLB debut, he missed the first half of that season with a torn labrum. In 2021, while in the minors, he missed two months due to a stress fracture in his foot.

When Jung gets injured, he gets injured. And, frankly, he’s kind of done with it.

“I don’t want any more of that,” he said.

When he’s been on the field, he’s produced. In 2023, his rookie season, he slashed .266/.315/.467/.782 with 23 home runs and 70 RBI. Even with the injury, he played in 122 games and returned in time to help the Rangers win their first World Series.

Last year’s injury was much more severe and only allowed Jung to play in 46 games. But his numbers remained steady. He slashed .264/.298/.421/.719 with seven home runs and 15 RBI.

He chuckled when asked what he’s learned from playing and responded, “Well, unfortunately I haven’t played.” Since his September call-up in 2022 he’s only played in 194 games.

So, he’s played. He just hasn’t played enough for his taste. But he knows there’s something there.

“I have had success,” Jung said. “I’m getting more comfortable at this level. So that’s all it really, really takes, because you start seeing pitchers more, you start to get more comfortable in the (batter’s) box.”

It’s a pivotal season for Jung, who will be arbitration-eligible after the season. With the trade of first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, the Rangers need a full, productive year from Jung after the entire offense took a step back.

He brings the maturity of missing significant time each of the last four seasons to a season that could prove to be a breakout one for him.

“When they first drafted me, it was ‘Go, go, go, do everything possible,’” he said. “I’ve had to learn to dial everything back, especially with injuries, and not to push it.”