At the risk of being either ridiculously obvious or terribly insensitive, I'm going to suggest that this exemplifies the biggest reason for nobody to count on Josh Hamilton for much of anything over the next few years:
Strained hamstring to sideline Josh Hamilton for up to a month: It stinks. Its frustrating, Hamilton said. You... http://t.co/Aa24oaoqlh
— Daily News (@DailyNews724) June 4, 2015
In 2013, Hamilton played in 151 games but certainly didn't look like the guy who'd been an MVP candidate the year before.
In 2014, Hamilton played in only 89 games, and again didn't look much like himself when he did play.
He got a late start in 2015 because he was injured. Again.
So when Hamilton got back to the majors with the Rangers and people asked me what we might expect, I said I was a lot more worried his durability than his well-known addiction issues. He's had those issues for most of his life, it seems. But in the last eight years, those issues seem to have cost Hamilton very little playing time.
But his physical injuries are a different story. Now he's played exactly seven games for the Rangers, and will miss another 30-some before he plays another. And I don't expect much to change during the life of his current contract, which runs through 2017.
Which isn't a big problem for the Rangers, since the Angels are paying the great majority of the many millions still owed Hamilton. it might be a small problem, though, because the organization will have to devote resources, both physical and intellectual, to coping with Hamilton's frequent injuries. If that's what happens.
