For the rest of the season, the Milwaukee Brewers will be without their All-Star outfielder Christian Yelich. Brewers and Yelich announced on Tuesday that he will have to undergo season-ending back surgery performed by Dr. Brandon Rebholz on Friday.
Christian sustained the injury during one of the matches and he has not played since July 23. Initially, he attempted to rehab the injury but that didn’t help much. He expects to be ready for the next season.
Here is what he said in a statement.
“After careful consideration and consultation with medical personnel, I have decided to undergo season-ending back surgery. I ultimately felt it was in the best interest of myself and the Brewers to have the surgery with the expectation of being back at 100% for next season. We have a very special team here and it will be disappointing not to be able to contribute on the field down the stretch. However, I have the utmost confidence in my teammates and will be cheering them on with all of you, the great fans of Milwaukee. Thank you for all your support. Go Brewers!”
Brewers also released a statement regarding Christian Yelich surgery.
Officially, he is on the injured list with the Brewers called lower back inflammation and he saw a spine specialist last month. After consultation with the doctor, he opted to go for the non-surgical route. But rehab didn’t prove to be as fruitful as they expected. So, he has no choice but to go for the surgery.
He has a history of back injuries, more often than not it comes up and he misses a game of two. He has gone on the injury list with a back issue six times in his major league career.
Before the injury, he had a tremendous bounceback season and slashed .315/.406/.504 with 11 home runs and 21 stolen bases in 73 games. That means he was 52% better than the league average hitter once adjusted for ballpark and other factors.
