In movies, everyone has their favorite superheroes. It could be Superman, Hulk, or even Ironman, to name a few. What stands out about them is that they seem indestructible. Irrepressible. Indestructible. No force or nothing can seem to expose them or show any weakness. However, this is not the case. Kryptonite made Superman weak. Hulk’s vulnerable state of mind was always a weakness, along with the adamantium that pierced his skin. Iron Man had to rely on a robotic suit, and if it malfunctioned in the heat of battle, he was toast.
Second baseman and MLBbro Marcus Semien has unquestionably been the Texas Rangers’ steadfast player over the years. In fact, if there was an Iron Man award in baseball, he’d be amongst the top contenders in the game. Semien was placed on the IL due to a left foot contusion after a foul ball struck the top of his foot. This is the first time he’s been placed on the IL in a whopping eight years. Semien told reporters Sunday that he fractured the third metatarsal as well as a sprain of the Lisfranc ligament in his foot.
“Hopefully we get back in this race and we’ll see where we’re at by that time,” Semien said, according to MLB.com. “I’m going to be watching for a little while here. The Lisfranc is what we’re most worried about, just trying to keep it intact by staying off of it. If you tear that, then it could be a year. I’m just trying to keep that intact and let the other fracture heal.”
Since the beginning of 2018, Semien leads the Majors with 1,145 games played and 5,139 plate appearances. No one else is within 200 plate appearances of Semien during that time. His injury interrupts a remarkable streak of starting in 98.5% of the team’s games over the past eight seasons. His only other trip to the injured list came with the Athletics early in the 2017 season, missing almost three months with a right wrist injury.
“It’s definitely new for me,” Semien said. “I haven’t been on the IL in a long time. But it’s going to be some time. So I think that what I can do is watch the games and just do my part to help the guys.”
The former Silver Slugger is hitting .230 with 15 homers, 62 RBIs and a team-leading 62 runs. He leads Texas in games (609), hits (610), triples (12), walks (239), runs (386) and total bases (1027) since joining the club. Semien is one of six second basemen this season with 60+ RBI, 60+ runs, and 15+ homers. The others are Brandon Lowe (Tampa Bay), Jazz Chisholm (New York Yankees), Ketel Marte (Arizona), Jose Altuve (Houston), and Brice Turang (Milwaukee). As of Thursday, the Rangers are 68-67, sitting third in the American League West.
