Anthony Rendon is headed to a very familiar spot during his time with the Los Angeles Angels — the injured list.
The Angels announced Monday that Rendon has been placed on the IL due to a left wrist contusion. The ex-All-Star third baseman was hit by a pitch during Thursday’s win over the Texas Rangers (but stayed in the game due to the team’s ravaged infield depth despite being unable to swing the bat).
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To say that Rendon has failed to meet expectations after getting a seven-year, $250 million contract from the Angels in 2019 would be putting it quite generously. He missed over 100 games due to injury in each of the previous two seasons and is now on his second IL stint of the 2023 season (missing time last month with a groin strain). Rendon also made headlines in recent months for another unflattering reason — an incident with a rival fan that police even got involved in.
The good news for Rendon is it is only a wrist contusion and not a fracture. The 33-year-old has actually been up to par this season when healthy too. While he is down to .248 on the year due to a recent slump, Rendon was hovering around .300 earlier this month and has been one of the Angels’ best hitters with runners in scoring position.
At least until Rendon can return from his latest injury (possibly as early as June 26 when he is eligible to come off the IL), the Angels will just have to scribble together whatever makeshift infield rotation they can find. Fellow infielders Gio Urshela (pelvic fracture) and Zach Neto (oblique strain) very recently landed on the IL as well. Utilitymen Andrew Velazquez and Michael Stefanic were brought up from Triple-A, and veteran David Fletcher might be getting the call soon too.
