OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker underwent surgery on his right forearm after being bothered by an elbow issue that limited him to playing primarily designated hitter this season.
Rooker's arthoscopic procedure was performed Tuesday by Dr. Michael Freehill to repair an extensor tendon that was partially torn, according to general manager David Forst.
“Easy cleanup and should be 100% by spring training,” Forst said.
The 29-year-old Rooker had a career-high 39 home runs and 112 RBIs while batting .293 over 145 games — 131 of those as DH. Manager Mark Kotsay hopes once healthy Rooker might be a regular outfield option again.
He was in the training room almost daily to feel well enough to play.
“Rook, he surpassed expectations in 2023 and sort of announced his presence as a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat and then took it a step further this year where he should have been a back-to-back All-Star," Forst said in video call Friday. “He was the guy we wanted up in every situation. He was the guy Mark counted on. He was not 100% healthy all year. I don’t know how many people even really noticed, but he didn’t play the outfield after the second half of the season.”
Forst added: “I’m not a doctor, I just play one on TV. But it strikes me as very impressive that he was able to battle through what he did and put up the offensive season that he had.”
Building a stronger offensive team will be a top priority as the club relocates to Sacramento for what's expected to be the next three years before the hope of playing in a new ballpark in Las Vegas for the 2028 campaign.
After consecutive 100-loss seasons, the A's finished 69-93 in Kotsay's third season and the final year at the Oakland Coliseum.
“Our biggest thing as we talk about lengthening the lineup, if we can do that with utilizing the DH position to add another bat and Rook can go out and play the outfield, that’s going to make us better,” Kotsay said. "We’re always looking to maximize our roster, and with Rook being able to play the outfield, it’s definitely going to help us do that.”
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Janie Mccauley, The Associated Press
