*Photo from AOL*
Texas Rangers OF Willie Calhoun underwent jaw surgery and will be out for at least two weeks, according to Levi Weaver of The Athletic. He underwent surgery for a non displaced fracture in his jaw after taking a fastball to the jaw from Dodgers RHP Julio Urias on Sunday. He had a plate inserted into his jaw. Calhoun will also be evaluated for a concussion. Calhoun will likely start the season on the IL. He is expected to be discharged sometime this week and will be re-evaluated in two weeks.Rangers GM Jon Daniels said that "Thankfully the injury wasn’t more significant than that, they did a CT scan, as well as a cervical MRI, to rule out any neck injury or something scary like a brain bleed. Fortunately, none of that was the case with Willie. We expect he’ll open on the injured list but we don’t know how long that will be." Daniels said of a possible concussion that "Based on the impact of the injury, you presume that there is some level of concussion, but because of the surgery and being sedated, they haven’t been able to test him for that. If there is one, hopefully it’s on the minor side."
Rangers manager Chris Woodward said that "If it’s any of our players, I’m going to feel the same, but there’s something about what Willie has done over the last year and a half to two years that kind of deeply affected me a little bit. Knowing how hard he’s worked and how excited he is about the season. My message to him was everybody is supporting you, tons of calls, texts. He feels the love, the support from his teammates and his organization. That’s all we can do and that’s what we have to do. As a leader, I have to be there for those guys. That’s not even a question."
Calhoun was carted off the field after staying on the ground for several minutes. He was flown to a hospital in Phoenix, AZ, to be examined by a specialist. Woodward went to the hospital with Calhoun. Once at the hospital, Daniels, Rangers medical director Jamie Reed, Calhoun's parents, and his girlfriend joined Woodward in the waiting room. Calhoun wasn't wearing a flap on his helmet when he was hit, as it is optional for players. Rangers pitcher Luke Farrell suffered a broken jaw along with a concussion last spring, and didn't play until July 23.
Teammate Joey Gallo visited Calhoun at the hospital, saying that "He’s doing all right, he couldn’t talk, but he was texting and writing on his phone. He’s good. He has all those tubes in him and is tired from the medicine. But he was saying, 'Tell Woody I am playing as soon as possible.' That’s all he could talk about. He just wants to hit. He is in pretty good spirits." Farrell said that "I feel horrible for Willie that he is going through this, Never want to see anybody go through it, let alone your teammate. Obviously, whatever I can do for him and his family, there will be plenty of time for that. Hopefully he is OK right now."
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