Rangers first baseman will undergo surgery to repair a tendon sheath in his left wrist later this week, . The injury originally occurred in mid-August. Theres no firm timetable on the recovery proce s, though Grant likens the forthcoming procedure to the surgery had following the 2024 season, and Jung was ready for spring training. Burger, 29, joined the Rangers after president of baseball Chris Young brought him over from the Marlins during last offseasons winter meetings a swap that sent infielder , infielder and left-hander back to Miami. The acquisition of Burger, much Kyle Stowers Jersey like the signing of , was intended to improve the Rangers teamwide production against fastballs after a down year in that regard in 2024. That didnt pan out, however, despite the sluggers prior excellence against four-seamers. Though Burger had a terrific track record against velocity, headlined by hitting .302 and slugging .651 against four-seam fastballs with Miami in 2024, he hit just .195 and slugged only .416 against four-seam fastballs in his first season with Texas. Overall, Burgers .236/.269/.419 batting line was the worst of his career and about 11% worse than that of a league-average offensive player, per wRC+. His 90.4 mph average exit velocity was a career-low, as was his 13.6% homer-to-flyball ratio. That August wrist injury surely played some role in his offensive downturn, but its not the lone culprit. Burger tells Grant that he received a cortisone injection at the time of the injury, which helped for a few weeks before he began feeling his tendon popping in his wrist for the seasons final few weeks. Unsurprisingly, Burger finished the year in a pronounced slump. He also dealt with injuries prior to that wrist i sue, however. Burger mi sed time with a strained left oblique back in June and was sidelined by a quadriceps strain the following month. Even before his injuries, Burgers struggles were glaring enough that Texas at the beginning of May. Hed opened the season in a .190/.231/.330 swoon and fanned in nearly 30% of his plate appearances. A .254/.284/.453 slash and 22.4% strikeout rate in 268 plate appearances following his recall was an obvious improvement but still not up to Burgers prior standards. Hes never been a disciplined hitter, but Burgers walk rate cratered to 3.2% in 2025. That was the third-lowest mark among the 277 players who reached 300 plate appearances. Burger also had the ninth-highest chase rate on pitches off the plate and the 16th-highest overall swing rate in that set of hitters, per Statcast. Ideally, better health and a fresh slate in 2026 will bring about better results. The Rangers will certainly be hoping as much. Burger is controlled for three more seasons and is slated to reach arbitration for the first time this winter after falling five days shy of Super Two status last offseason. For now, he projects to be back atop the teams depth chart at first base in 2026 as well, though a further shakeup of the teams offense is po sible after another playoff mi s. Willians Astudillo Jersey