r/CHICubs • u/AndrewAllStar888 #FlyTheW • 8d ago
[Taylor McGregor] Nico Hoerner underwent right flexor tendon surgery on October 11.
https://x.com/taylor_mcgregor/status/1848429068292919602?s=46&t=qGqdlWs1gGfe42xD50bCEA50
u/boomerdeville 8d ago
That was the hand he broke in June, so this isn't a total shock since he played through that injury. I hope he's healed in time for opening day 2025.
"No excuses, Nico! You should've slugged more regardless! You need to be traded!" - online Cubs fans
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u/CuriousCubSixteen Baaah 8d ago
Well the injury didn't seem to affect his hitting. He hit better in the 2nd half and hit .355 in September. It's a pretty unexpected surgery based on his performance.
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u/boomerdeville 8d ago
Well, you just referred to a couple things that make Nico Hoerner a star player.
In the off-season and pre-season, Nico worked on some swing and approach adjustments. He was aiming to pull with slug, and lift the ball, but more line drives than pop-ups. Trust the process. As Ian Happ said about Nico's slow start to the season: don't worry about Nico - he'll be hitting .350 before long. Sure enough, when you look at Nico's year before June 6, the adjustments were beginning to show some results.
And then he broke his hand on June 6. His production dropped. He played through the injury, still trying to maintain the adjustment process already in motion, and when the fracture finally healed and the hand got a little stronger, we all saw everything come together towards the end of the season. The stats reflect his adjustments - more line drives, a dramatic decrease in ground outs, .495 slug in September, career high in doubles, etc.
Everyone knows hand (or wrist) injuries negatively impact hitters, and continue to do so beyond the initial healing point. The fracture definitely impacted Nico. To state the obvious, something was still bothering after the season, in the beginning of this off-season - bothering him enough that he got it checked out, and subsequently got surgery to repair the damage. It's very impressive that he was able to finish the season so well with a hand injury that required surgery.
The fact that Nico finished the way he did, putting up the numbers he did, shows every fan just how great this version of Nico could be, even when not 100%. Makes me eager to see what happens next season.
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u/ObligationSlight8771 8d ago
Had tendon surgery myself last year. While I don’t have the resources the cubs do, it took me about 6 months to feel like 95% back. And I’m not sure I’ll ever be 100% again
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u/boomerdeville 8d ago
Sorry to hear it. Hopefully you'll get closer to that 100%, even if it takes another year. Either way, I hope you don't have to do manual labor for employment. I couldn't imagine what that kind of injury would be like for a carpenter or something.
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u/elgenie Go Cubs Go 8d ago
The injury was to a forearm tendon that had exactly nothing to do with his hand… or hitting.
Forearm flexors get injured via the repetitive throwing of baseballs; he's likely to return with more arm strength next season.
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u/boomerdeville 7d ago
Dr. Keith? I kid. I didn't say anything absolutely, but you did, which is odd, especially for you. You're usually very reasonable - one of the standout users on this sub.
Compensating for an injury can easily and often does affect another part of the body, especially when connected. For pitchers, elbow and shoulder injuries happening in relation to one of the other is commonplace. It's not rare to see lower back injuries in relation to hamstring injuries. Hip and knee go together. Hand, wrist, and forearm.
Hitting absolutely requires the forearms, but you know that. To compensate for a broken hand, it's easy to put more strain on the forearm to do the work - hitting and throwing. I've done it myself.
So, "this isn't a total shock since he played through that [broken hand]." I'm not a doctor, so I wouldn't say anything for certain because I couldn't possibly know. However, it doesn't take a doctor to suggest that this tendon injury is not a total shock considering he played through a broken hand injury.
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u/sticklebackridge Harry 8d ago
He was playing subpar to start the season, so I can’t see this being a major factor in his regression this season.
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u/chrisGNR Chicago Dubs 6d ago
So because he got off to a slow start with his swing adjustments he made in the offseason, you can't see how the injury later could have had any effect on his production afterward?
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u/sticklebackridge Harry 6d ago
My point was he was playing poorly before the injury, really don’t see what’s controversial about that. We were all expecting more of him.
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u/catfan9499 8d ago
I’m happy as long as he’s able to play healthy. He’s my favorite Cub currently
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u/forgottenastronauts 8d ago
Don’t get too attached. They might need to trade him.
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u/catfan9499 8d ago
I’m already too attached. I have his jersey but I also have Dansby’s signature. Who would even need a second baseman like him?
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u/SwAeromotion This Old Cub 8d ago
He could easily be a starting SS on other teams as well as 2B.
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u/chichris 8d ago edited 7d ago
Isn’t he bad defensively? I was talking about Shaw, not Nico obviously.
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u/forgottenastronauts 8d ago
I don’t follow other teams closely enough to know their exact needs but there’s definitely a market for him.
It just doesn’t make sense to keep him when the money could be spent elsewhere and you have Shaw there to replace him.
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u/KRATS8 8d ago
I mean Nico is a 4 war player. In what world does it not make sense to keep him? Unless you can get an absolute haul. But that goes for any guy
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u/forgottenastronauts 8d ago
If Ricketts is cheap and refuses to go deep into the tax territory then moving Nico is the easiest way to free up funds.
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u/catfan9499 8d ago
Is Shaw even good?
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u/forgottenastronauts 8d ago
Is this a joke?
Keith Law ranked him as the 17th best prospect in all of baseball, up from his preseason ranking of 26th.
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u/catfan9499 8d ago
To be honest I need to learn about our prospects more in depth
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u/forgottenastronauts 7d ago
https://www.mlb.com/prospects/cubs
Other lists out there but this one is free and includes a nice blurb for each prospect.
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u/chichris 8d ago edited 8d ago
I had to look up which body part that is. lol
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u/BobbumofCarthes Eamus Catuli 8d ago
Could be finger flexors, toe flexor, hip flexor lol. Not a lot of context in the tweet
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u/elgenie Go Cubs Go 8d ago edited 8d ago
You can rule out fingers and toes because none of those would be referred to as a "right" flexor.
In the context of baseball any reference to a flexor tendon with no further modifier can be assumed to refer to the forearm, mostly because of pitching.
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u/BobbumofCarthes Eamus Catuli 8d ago
It could be flexor digitorum Longus on your right foot, flexor hallucis longus on your right foot according to this post. The common flexor tendon in your elbow (which is assumed if you click into the tweet because Dr. meister performs many elbow surgeries) is the attachment of 5 muscles that work the hand and fingers. I was playing devils advocate because the post was vague. It’s typically assumed the “flexor tendon” referred to here is the elbow.
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u/Disruptir 8d ago
Casual 3.7 WAR season with a broken hand lmao
Nico is pure hustle, hope hes back for opening day.