Fansided

Prince Fielder may be headed for season-ending neck surgery

By Brad Berreman

Jul 10, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder (84) on deck in the sixth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 10, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder (84) on deck in the sixth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
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Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder has landed on the disabled list with a herniated disc in his neck, and he could need season-ending surgery.

On Wednesday, the Texas Rangers placed first baseman/designated hitter Prince Fielder on the 15-day disabled list after an MRI revealed a herniated disc in his neck. Via a conference call from the team, the Dallas Morning News is reporting that Fielder may need season-ending surgery.

Rangers’ general manager Jon Daniels said Fielder acknowledged similar symptoms to the 2014 neck injury that limited him to 42 games in his first season with the team. Via the aforementioned conference call, the injury is reportedly one vertebrae above the first injury that required surgery to fix.

Fielder will get a second opinion from Dr. Drew Dossett, who performed the first neck surgery two years ago, in Dallas on Friday. At this point though, Fielder’s prospects to return to action anytime soon don’t look good.

Even with slightly better numbers recently (.245/.344/.400, four home runs and 14 RBI since June 11-31 games), Fielder has posted a dismal.212/.292/.334 slash-line with eight home runs and 44 RBI over 370 plate appearances this season. Dating back to after the All-Star break in 2015, Fielder has a .235/.318/.362 slash-line with 17 home runs over 686 plate appearances.

On Sunday, manager Jeff Banister expressed optimism that Fielder would break out in the second half of the season and have an impact on the Rangers’ lineup. That seemed like an extremely optimistic outlook at the time, with a presumption of solid health. Fielder’s new neck injury has left little or no chance he’ll recapture the power numbers of his prime years, or anything close to that, in 2016 and surely beyond.

For more news from around the diamond, check out our MLB page.

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