MLB 2022: 5 most injury-prone players in the league right now
Perhaps nothing pains an MLB franchise more than an impact player getting injured and being sidelined for a period of time. Although most players end up getting hurt at some point in their careers, it definitely happens to some more than others.
So far in the 2022 season, there have been superstars who have not been able to grace the diamond due to injury. There are also players who are just recovering from injuries from last season as well. Today, we are going to look at the five most injury-prone MLB players in the league currently.
5 MLB Players that struggle to stay on the field
#5 Mike Trout - Los Angeles Angels
Now, it might be surprising to see the greatest player of this generation to make this list. However, Mike Trout, along with missing the majority of the 2021 season, has had a few low-key injuries throughout his career.
Trout missed most of last season with a calf injury that was devastating for the Los Angeles Angels, who finished 77-85, fourth in the American League West. Before this injury, Trout missed 39 games in 2017 with a torn thumb ligiment, along with missing time in 2018 for inflammation and 2019 for recovering from foot surgery, both 19-game stints on the injured list. While Trout is healthy and on the field, he is bar-none one of the greatest athletes in the sport today. When he is sidelined, however, it deeply hurts the Angels and the MLB in general.
#4 Aaron Judge - New York Yankees
Although Aaron Judge might get overshadowed by another member of the New York Yankees who is higher on this list, Judge already has a history of getting hurt in his short career. In 2021, Judge missed 14 games due to lower back soreness. Then in 2020, he suffered from a calf strain, causing him to miss some time. In 2019 and 2018, Judge missed significant amounts of time due to an oblique strain and a wrist fracture. It is safe to say from his injury prone past that Judge is not made of steel.
When on the field, Aaron Judge is a star and a key contributor to the New York Yankees' success. However, the Yanks miss that big bat in the lineup when he is sidelined with injury.
AARON JUDGE WALKOFF HOMERUN https://t.co/6vkIBnD36N
"AARON JUDGE WALKOFF HOMERUN" - @ Talkin' Yanks
Luckily, Judge has shown no signs of injury so far this 2022 MLB season.
#3 Noah Syndergaard - Los Angeles Angels
Recent Los Angeles Angels pickup and teammate of Mike Trout, Noah Syndergaard sits on this list because of his longtime injury problems when he was a member of the New York Mets. Syndergaard missed two entire years when playing for the Mets, not pitching from September 2019 to September 2021. Along with this, he saw the mound only seven times in 2017, being sidelined with injury for most of the year. It is because of this history that New York ultimately let him walk in the 2021 MLB offseason.
So far this season, Syndergaard has looked healthy and sharp with a 3.60 earned run average with the Angels. He has performed well alongside Angels ace Shohei Ohtani and has helped Los Angeles to a 24-16 record, just 1.5 games shy of first place in the AL West.
#2 Jacob deGrom - New York Mets
It should be to nobody's surprise that two-time National League Cy Young Award winner and New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom is on this list. Although deGrom did not experience much injury at the start of his career, he has struggled staying on the field recently. Despite posting an insane 1.08 ERA in 92 innings for the Mets in 2021, deGrom was sidelined for a good portion of the season with injuries related to his arm.
So far this 2022 MLB season, Jacob deGrom is being heavily missed in Queens, having not touched the field yet for the Mets. Although the Mets have been on a tear this season with the best record in the NL East, they would surely be much better off if they had deGrom on the mound every five days. There is hope that deGrom returns this season; however the timetable for his return remains unknown.
#1 Giancarlo Stanton - New York Yankees
Since being traded to the New York Yankees back in the 2017 MLB offseason, Giancarlo Stanton might be the most disappointing Yankees pickup, and that is solely due to his inability to stay healthy. Stanton has played only 373 games over five seasons with New York, missing significant amounts of 2019, 2020, and some of 2021. This is not to mention his injury-riddled Miami Marlins career, that saw him miss notable portions of four seasons.
Stanton this year looks like his old self, hitting .296 with a .910 OPS while also leading the American League in runs batted in. The New York Yankees also have the best record in the MLB, and Stanton has been a key piece to their lineup so far.
Giancarlo Stanton hits a home run OVER THE LEFT FIELD WALL! https://t.co/tjl3xtLnjD
"Giancarlo Stanton hits a home run OVER THE LEFT FIELD WALL!" - @ Talkin' Yanks
If Stanton can stay on the field this season, it it likely that he will experience continued success at the plate, something that he is used to.