Cleveland Indians: Bradley Zimmer out 8-12 months

The disappointing series of events for the Cleveland Indians’ outfielder continue as Bradley Zimmer has surgery on his hand effectively ending his season.

The Cleveland Indians received some sobering news today on the topic of one of their young stars. Outfielder Bradley Zimmer has had hand surgery which means that his season is over. He will be out for 8-12 months with would bring him back after the 2019 season has started.

Zimmer was sent down to the minors based on his struggles at the plate early on this season. He  played just 34 games with the Tribe and had a .226/.281/.330 slash line. He made two rehab starts in Double-A Akron where he went 1-3 with two walks in two games.

Zimmer has struggled with his health all season, an issue that has plagued his brothers’ MLB career as a pitcher in the Royals system. The hope is that Zimmer will not be bothered continually by injuries like his brother. We’ve seen that when he is healthy that Zimmer can be one of the most talented defensive outfielders in baseball.

Unfortunately his high-flying outfield acrobatics netted him an injury when he collided with the wall in Yankee Stadium. It’s a shame to see him have such bad luck in his second year in the majors.

This feels eerily similar to the sophomore season that Tyler Naquin experienced last year. Naquin faced similar adversity for much of the 2017 season and wasn’t really able to put things together. He has rebounded impressively this year. Hopefully Zimmer can follow in Naquin’s footsteps when he returns in 2019.

This injury along with Lonnie being out for several months further emphasizes the Indians need to trade for an outfielder at the deadline. The Tribe outfield is still productive given Naquin’s good play but they need more depth alongside All-Star outfielder Michael Brantley.

Next: Ramblings on the first half of the 2018 Indians season

It’s likely the Cleveland Indians are already exploring their options on the trade market. President Chris Antonetti has made it clear he will do whatever it takes to take the Indians deep into October this year. Unfortunately Zimmer will be unable to be a part of that October run this season.