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Toronto Blue Jays: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. undergoes wrist surgery

By Tyson Shushkewich

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - SEPTEMBER 05: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. #13 of the Toronto Blue Jays runs to first base against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards during game one of a double header on September 05, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - SEPTEMBER 05: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. #13 of the Toronto Blue Jays runs to first base against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards during game one of a double header on September 05, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /
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Yesterday on Instagram, Blue Jays left-fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. uploaded a picture of him in a hospital bed with his left wrist in a cast and a caption translated “Everything turned out just fine! Thank God and thank you all for the messages and concerns….”.

This caught a few fans by surprise, mostly because Gurriel Jr. finished the year on the IL with a hamstring strain and there wasn’t really any mention of his wrist bothering him (at least as of late). With the Jays out of the playoffs rather early, Gurriel Jr. decided to take care of the problem.

There were reports earlier this year that the outfielder was dealing with wrist discomfort and he apparently has been dealing with it all season, which might make sense as to why his power numbers dropped pretty dramatically this season compared to his previous campaigns with the Blue Jays.

Blue Jays outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. undergoes wrist surgery

After making his debut in 2018, the Cuban-born righty-batter has had at least 11 home runs each season, setting a career-high 21 homers last season. This year, that number dropped to just five, as Gurriel Jr. suited up in 121 games, the second-highest mark so far in his five-year career.

While the power wasn’t necessarily there, his bat was still playing well, compiling a .291/.343/.400 slash line through 453 at-bats, with his batting average ranking the highest on the Jays squad this year. Gurriel also added a career-high 32 doubles to go with a 113 OPS+ and a 114 wRC+.

Statcast-wise, the left-fielder ranked in the 79th percentile in hard hit % and the 80th percentile in terms of average exit velocity, so the wrist injury didn’t hamper his ability to hit the ball hard, just more in terms of getting it over the fence.

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The injury now makes more sense as to why we saw a drop in the home runs for Gurriel Jr. as he was dealing with the wrist injury. With the surgery now out of the way, Gurriel is expected to be healthy and ready to go for the start of Spring Training.

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