ANAHEIM, Calif. — Los Angeles Angels infielder Zack Cozart will undergo another procedure on his injured left shoulder, this one an arthroscopic debridement that will essentially clean damaged tissue in hopes of getting him on track towards a full recovery. Cozart will not return this season — a reality the Angels had long accepted — but is hopeful of swinging the bat again in six weeks and riding that into a normal, healthy offseason.
Cozart, 33, in the middle of a three-year, $38 million contract, re-tore the labrum that was surgically repaired on the final day of June in 2018. He felt a sharp pain after a swing in Minnesota around the middle of May and said he played through pain for a couple more weeks before landing on the injured list. Doctors believe that swing was the genesis of Cozart’s re-injury.
Dr. Neal ElAttrache will perform the next procedure in Los Angeles on Wednesday with the hope that it will eliminate the need for another full-scale shoulder surgery.
“It’s pretty complicated, actually,” said Cozart, who has batted .190/.261/.296 while playing in only 96 games in his first two seasons with the Angels. “I’ve learned a lot about my anatomy in the past two months that I didn’t really care about until now. Hopefully this works and just cleans it up; I can get my motion back and get the strength in there again and start swinging.”
Cozart spent his first seven seasons in the majors with the Cincinnati Reds and made the All-Star team in 2017.