Tigers' Miguel Cabrera undergoes surgery on ankle, foot
Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera had surgery Wednesday in an effort to return the reigning two-time MVP back to full health.
The team announced Friday that Cabrera underwent successful surgery to remove bone spurs in his right ankle and repair a stress fracture to his navicular bone. He will be re-evaluated in three months.
It's the second straight year Cabrera has had offseason surgery. The 31-year-old also went under the knife last winter to repair a core muscle.
Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski revealed earlier this month that Cabrera was bothered by bone spurs in his ankle, but noted any surgery would be a simple procedure. The stress fracture to his navicular bone - located at the top of the foot - was not previously known.
"It was a surprise, I’d say, for all of us," Dombrowski said Friday, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck."We were not aware (the stress fracture) was there. I’m not sure how long it was there. He did have a couple of screws inserted."
Cabrera admitted during the second half of the season he was slowed by lower-body pain, but the slugger remained coy on the severity and nature of the injury. Despite posting his lowest home run total and hitting rates since 2004, Cabrera was still a force in the middle of the Tigers lineup.
| 2014 STATS | AVG | HR | 2B | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabrera (MLB rank) | .301 (10th) | 25 (22nd) | 52 (2nd) | 5.4 (19th) |
The nine-time All-Star clubbed a career-high 52 doubles and continued to perform at an elite level offensively. According to FanGraphs' wRC+ metric, Cabrera created 47 percent more runs than league average.
Though he reportedly said he was suffering after-effects from the core surgery around the All-Star break and was noticeably bothered by right ankle pain in August, Cabrera finished the year with emphasis.
The Venezuelan native hit .379/.409/.709 with eight homers and 10 doubles in September, ending the season worth more wins than any first baseman in the American League.
"It’s amazing that he was able to do that," Dombrowski said. "(The surgery) was much more involved (than expected) with the fracture there being in a position - and again, I don’t know when that happened. It’s amazing he was able to function with the foot and the ankle the way it is. He really is as tough as can be."
Rawlings announced Wedneday that Cabrera is among three finalists for the AL Gold Glove.