Washington Nationals Slugger Faces Long Recovery Timetable After Surgery

A timeline for recovery for Washington Nationals third baseman Paul DeJong is starting to take shape after his surgery.

DeJong needed to wait two weeks to have surgery after he was hit in the face by a pitch on April 15 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Surgeons needed to wait for the swelling in his face to go down. On Monday, he underwent sinus, orbital plate and nose surgery.

Up until Tuesday, the Nationals were unable to provide a clear timeline because the surgery wasn’t complete.

Well, now, the Nationals can get a little firmer. Manager Dave Martinez said he spoke to DeJong on Tuesday and said the veteran was in good spirts after the surgery. He also started filling in the blanks on the third baseman’s recovery time.

“I think he’s going to still be down for a while,” Martinez said to beat reporters, including the Washington Post’s Spencer Nusbaum, who posted the quote on social media. “I think now they said about a month before he can actually do any activities. Hopefully we get him back sometime around the All-Star break, but we’ll see. I mean, only time will tell now. It’s just about healing with him right now.”

A month before baseball activities would put DeJong at the end of May. Then it’s a ramp-up through baseball activities before a likely rehab assignment. But the Nationals aren’t looking that far ahead yet.

The All-Star break is July 14-17. If DeJong is back after the break, he will have been down approximately three months.

The 30-year-old slashed .204/.246/.278 in 16 games. He has four doubles, but no home runs, with just two RBI.

Pirates pitcher Mitch Keller hit DeJong with a 93-mph pitch that got away from him and hit him just underneath his helmet.

After falling to the ground, DeJong started to roll onto his back and took his left hand and started feeling underneath his left eye. He was able to get up and leave the field with the help of one of the team’s trainers. He received a CT scan after the game.

The Nationals signed DeJong during spring training as a potential answer for their need at third base, a position where Washington had some of the worst power numbers in baseball a season ago. He won the job, even though he only played 41 games there in his Major League career.

DeJong is with the Nationals on a one-year deal worth just $1 million, with $600,000 of incentives thrown in.

Last season he played for the Chicago White Sox and the Kansas City Royals. He slashed .227/.276/.427/.703 with 24 home runs and 56 RBI. From a power perspective it was his best season since his only All-Star campaign in 2019.