Miguel Rojas needs wrist surgery

The Miami Marlins received some tragic news today, SS Miguel Rojas needs wrist surgery. Before we look at how this affects the team, I should mention that Rojas is known for being controversial in the locker room. I also want to add that the SS situation for 2023 is still up in the air. Now let’s look at how serious this injury is and how this affects the team…

Miguel Rojas needs wrist surgery.

Miguel Rojas needs surgery to specifically “repair a torn triangular fibrocartilage complex in his right wrist” on Wednesday. Miggy said that he first got injured on July 21 when he slid into third base. He then continued playing despite the pain. As you can imagine it may have affected his performance at the plate.

Miguel Rojas is finishing the season with 2.6 WAR and a .237/.282/.324 batting line. He only produced 6 home runs and 36 RBI. Is it possible that this was affected by his injury? Rojas’s highest home run total in a season is 11, back in 2018. His Exit Velocity has been 85.9 this season, which is actually higher than his career 85.7 mark. It doesn’t seem that his power has been affected by the wrist injury.

Miguel Rojas isn’t a good offensive player, but does have a 2.7 dWAR, that is actually elite. I think it’s pretty clear that the Miami Marlins need offensive help so badly, that other than being cheap, there’s no real reason for us not to pursue the likes of Xander Bogaerts and Carlos Correa in free agency. There is an argument to be made however of upgrading offensively at other positions and keeping Rojas at a premium defensive position.

It’s actually a second injury for Rojas in the last two seasons…  He dislocated his left index finger in May 2021. He didn’t miss much time (three weeks) but hit worse upon his return from injury. He should be ready by Spring Training next season to play out the second year of his 2 year/$10 million contract. $5 million a year is not an unfair deal, so he is affordable no matter what role he plays on The Fish in 2023.

Miguel Rojas should be fine by the beginning of the 2023 season, but whether he will be a starter or on the bench remains to be seen. We’ll also see if his hitting will be affected further by the injury.