Rangers Star Marcus Semien Moved to Injured List for First Time in Eight Years

Semien briefly spoke to reporters on Saturday and said that he would have more information on his injury on Sunday after he sees a foot specialist. He did say that the foot — which was in a walking boot for a third straight day — hasn’t gotten much better. He set the expectation that it could be some time before he’s available to play.

Semien said he has had an X-ray, an MRI and a CAT scan in the last two days since he fouled a ball of his foot in the first inning of Thursday’s game against the Royals. They have looked at both the top and the bottom the foot and while no fracture has been detected yet, he and doctors are being thorough.

Per his MLB.com player page, the last time Semien was on the injured list was in 2017, when he missed nearly three months with a right wrist contusion while with the Oakland Athletics. Since then, he’s been one of baseball’s most durable players. The 34-year-old has played in at least 159 in each of the last four seasons, dating back to 2021 with the Toronto Blue Jays. With the Rangers he’s played in 161 games in 2022, 162 games in 2023 and 159 games in 2024.

He has been a perplexingly slow starter at the plate since he signed with the Rangers and if he’s done for the season, he would have his worst year offensively with the Rangers. He is slashing .230/.305/.364 with 15 home runs and 64 RBI. He has three more years left on a seven-year, $175 million deal he signed before the 2022 season.

Adolis Garcia Returns

With Semien moving to the IL, the Rangers don’t have to sacrifice any of its outfield depth to move Garcia in the starting lineup. Even without Evan Carter, who is on the IL with a wrist fracture, the Rangers have enough coverage to handle any in-game injuries or substitutions.

Garcia was moved to the IL on Aug. 13 with a left ankle sprain. It was his first trip to the IL this season. The usually durable outfielder has played in at least 148 games in each of his four previous full Major League seasons.

The season has been a struggle for him offensively, though it has been for much of the team. He was slashing .224/.266/.388 when he suffered the injury, with 16 home runs and 64 RBI. In late May he sat out the entire St. Louis series as Texas gave him a chance to reset his struggling swing. It worked, for a while. But in 11 games in August, he slashed .196/.213/.348 with one home run and two RBI.