When is Josh Jung Coming Back? Fantasy Baseball Injury Update

Say it isn't so! The injury bug has bitten again and Josh Jung must be wearing an attractant because it keeps coming back to bite him.

In 2021, he missed time due to a stress fracture in his foot. Then, in 2022, he was diagnosed with a torn labrum and missed extended time. In 2023, he took a liner off his glove-hand that broke his thumb and resulted in a lengthy absence.

Now, just a few games into 2024, the Rangers third baseman has a fractured wrist after being hit by a pitch and is expected to miss several weeks. It's hard to blame getting plunked or a hard liner off his hand on him, but call it injury-prone, call it bad luck, call it whatever you want -- at the end of the day, Josh Jung is headed to the IL again.

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Josh Jung Injury Update for Fantasy Baseball

Had it not been for Jung's thumb injury in 2023, he may have given Gunnar Henderson a run for his money as AL Rookie of the Year. Before going down with the thumb injury last season, Jung earned a spot on the AL All-Star team. Back at it in 2024, the 26-year-old was off to a hot start, going 7-for-17 (.412) with two home runs, six RBI, five runs scored, and a stolen base.

Josh Jung with a 3-run home run to give the @Rangers the lead! pic.twitter.com/NnCgiSms41

— MLB (@MLB) April 1, 2024

However, in the top of the ninth inning in a 7-3 game that the Rangers were winning, on strolled Rays reliever Phil Maton. Regardless of what song Maton is coming out of the 'pen to in 2024, from now on it should be "Wild Thing." The third-percentile fastball velo is not reminiscent of Rick Vaughn, but the nickname fits. In the one inning he pitched Monday, the righty managed to hit three batters in a row, the last of which was the unfortunate Josh Jung.

Jung was actually trying to hold up his swing when he was hit, so it was called a strike and won't go in the books as an HBP by Maton, but the pitch resulted in a fractured right wrist and Jung is expected to miss all of April and likely some of May.

Josh Jung Fantasy Baseball Outlook

After a .266-23-70-75-1 line in 2023, it appeared Jung was off to the races and would be able to reach those numbers again at a minimum in 2024, but those hopes have been dashed. That is probably his ceiling now.

Wrist injuries are notorious for sapping power from players' swings until they are truly fully recovered, so expecting numbers somewhat lower than that 2023 line is more realistic. Look for a line closer to .260-20-60-60-2 over the full season once he returns assuming (fingers crossed) he can manage to stay healthy after he comes back. That kind of production still makes him a top-12 option at the hot corner when he comes off of the IL.

In the meantime, the Rangers have called up their top prospect, 25-year-old Justin Foscue, who can play third, as well as first and second base. Foscue is a 2020 first-round draft pick who hit .266-18-84-94-14 over 563 PA in 2023 and could be a decent speculative add in deep leagues for managers hoping to catch lightning in a bottle until Jung returns.

The Rangers also have 24-year-old Ezequiel Duran and 26-year-old Josh Smith who can man the position. Duran and Smith both filled in last year for Jung, with Duran being the much more appealing fantasy option after a 107 wRC+ season in 2023 and multi-position eligibility compared to Smith's wRC+ of 78.

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