Tim Tebow’s chances of being called up to the New York Mets got a thumb’s down after the 30-year-old was put on the disabled list after injuring his hand.
The former NFL quarterback turned minor league baseball outfielder reportedly suffered a hand injury on Thursday with his Double A team, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies.
The initial diagnosis was a fracture to his right hamate bone, which is a bone in the wrist near the pinkie finger. Tebow did not comment on the injury, nor is it known how he may have suffered it. He did have some visible discomfort after his at-bat in the seventh inning.
Manager Luis Rojas said his player would be flying to New York City to have a specialist examine him.
“The organization and our medical trainer required him to go to New York as soon as possible,” Rojas said. “We have to find out what the discomfort is. We just have to make sure that it’s nothing major.”
The decision was made on Monday to have the surgery done. The operation will be performed on Tuesday, and Tebow might miss the remainder of the season.
Call-Up Future in Doubt
Before news of the injury, Tebow had been climbing up the betting board in regards to getting promoted to the major leagues before the end of the season. In the first week of July, BetOnline had his chances at +240 that he would be on the Mets roster and -350 he would not. Two weeks later, Bovada had the odds at +160 he would come up, and -180 he would not.
Now being on the disabled list, his chance of playing in the Big Show is a lot less likely. The recover time is usually six to eight weeks. That would put him right at the Aug. 31 deadline to be put on the 40-man roster.
Both Bovada and BetOnline have taken his odds off their sites, though Bovada did have an interesting prop bet regarding Tebow. “Will Tim Tebow be on the 25 man active roster for the Aug. 25 “Faith Day” Game? The famous Christian athlete is a +700 to be there, and a -1400 to still be in the minors.
Do Mets Need Tebow?
Regarded as a sideshow when his minor league career began two years ago, Tebow has improved steadily, and before his injury, was having his best month as a pro. He had a nine-game hitting streak, and was batting .409 for July. His average climbed to .273 for the season, and he had hit six home runs.
The Mets could certainly use his name to help their lagging attendance if nothing else. Citi Field has seen average attendance drop from 30,757 in 2017 to 29,646 this season. The team has the worst record in the National League as of Monday at 40-56, and will miss the playoffs for the second consecutive year.
Tebow preferred not to speculate on his future, saying at the beginning of the month he was focusing on improving. He told The Sporting News that the decision is not his to make.
“I think for me, I can’t worry about any of that,” Tebow said. “I have to stay focused on the process and not the maybes, not the hypothetical, not the what-ifs. I don’t think that’s a place that an athlete can live. I don’t think you can let your mind go into places like that.”