Eric Jagielo, one of the better prospects in a suddenly not-terrible Yankees farm system, looks to be headed for arthroscopic surgery on his knee after sustaining an injury sliding into home on June 16th. At first it seemed that the injury wasn't too serious and would only require a brief DL stint, but Jagielo made little progress and the team sent him through the MRI tube. The news turned out to be less than ideal as doctors found loose bodies in his left knee.
At the moment, they are getting a second opinion and Jagielo will have another MRI to confirm the diagnosis, but no one is sounding very positive about it. Trenton Thunder manager Al Pedrique told The Trentonian that his starting third baseman is "going to be out for awhile."
Of course, this halts a stellar season that Jagielo was having, perhaps for good. The 2013 first-round pick was just named to the Eastern League All-Star Game after hitting .284/.347/.495 with a 141 wRC+ to go along with nine homers and 35 RBI. Baseball America ranked him as the 11th best prospect in the organization, and Pinstripe Alley's own rankings had him 10th. While his lefty power bat has been impressive, Jagielo does have some serious defensive issues, making it unclear whether or not he'll be able to stick at third base long term. Regardless of what happens with his glove, if he keeps hitting like he has, New York–or another team–will fin a spot for him in the lineup.
Injuries are nothing new for Jagielo–he missed about two months last year with a strained oblique, and then had to skip the Arizona Fall League after he was hit by a pitch and required a titanium plate inserted around his eye to help a facial fracture heal. On top of that, he was also recently diagnosed with diabetes, so it's been an unlucky few years for him. Hopefully he can get back from this latest injury before too long and maybe make it to the Arizona Fall League this year. At the moment, it looks like this could be the end of Jagielo's 2015 season, one that could have been his breakout season.