CLEVELAND — Cleveland Guardians All-Star third baseman Jose Ramirez played the second half of the season – and the team’s playoff run – with a torn right thumb ligament that will require surgery.

The team said Ramirez injured the ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb during a June game in Los Angeles. He’ll have an operation in the next few weeks and will require up to two months to recover.

The Guardians said Wednesday that the rehab will not significantly impact his offseason training or his availability for next season.

The revelation of Ramirez’s injury came one day after the Guardians were eliminated from the postseason, losing Game 5 of the AL Division Series to the New York Yankees.

Ramirez went 1 for 3 in the finale, driving in Cleveland’s only run with a sacrifice fly in the third inning.

Despite the injury, the 30-year-old Ramirez had another stellar season in 2022, which he began by signing a seven-year, $141 million contract that likely will keep him with the Guardians for the rest of his career.

Ramirez batted .280 with 29 home runs and 126 RBI, five behind league leader Aaron Judge. He could finish in the top three in AL MVP voting for the fourth time in his career.

MARINERS: The Seattle Mariners will head into the offseason with four key players needing downtime or surgery to heal injuries, including AL Rookie of the Year favorite Julio Rodriguez.

Jerry Dipoto, Seattle’s president of baseball operations, said Rodriguez broke his left pinkie during Game 3 of the AL Division Series against Houston. Dipoto said an exit exam this week revealed the injury to the 21-year-old All-Star, but he’s not expected to need surgery.

Also needing downtime to recover from injuries are catcher Cal Raleigh (thumb) and standout reliever Andres Munoz (foot), while outfielder Jesse Winker has already undergone one of two operations needed to repair injuries he dealt with during the season.

Rodriguez got hurt sliding headfirst into second base on a double in the eighth inning of what became an 18-inning marathon the Mariners lost 1-0 to Houston that ended their season. Rodriguez also dealt with back and wrist injuries during the season, with the lower back strain popping up late in the season and costing him time when the Mariners were pushing for a postseason spot.

ANGELS: Hitting coach Jeremy Reed and assistant hitting coach John Mallee will not return next season.

Reed has been the Angels’ hitting coach since 2019, serving for four seasons under three managers after spending two years as the organization’s minor league hitting coordinator. Mallee was his assistant for the past three seasons.

The Angels were a dismal hitting team in 2022 while finishing with their seventh consecutive losing record and missing the playoffs for the eighth straight year.

Despite the presence of former AL MVPs Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani alongside up-and-coming hitters Luis Rengifo and Taylor Ward, Los Angeles led the majors with 1,539 strikeouts, finishing 22nd in hits, 23rd in OPS and 25th in runs. Several key players regressed offensively, and the Angels’ lack of organizational depth forced underprepared prospects into key roles.

Phil Nevin is returning on a one-year contract as manager of the Angels in 2023 after taking over in an interim capacity last June when Joe Maddon was fired.

The future of nearly every Angels employee is up in the air with owner Arte Moreno exploring a sale of the team.

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