Brantley's Second Half 2016

before i start posting all of my Brantley wrap up blogs, i have to post about his (atypical) second half of 2016. for the first time in Michael Brantley's Major League career, he missed out on the entire second half of the year. he was still on the disabled list when baseball resumed after the All Star Break, and then his season-ending surgery in August ensured that he would not be playing again in 2016. therefore, he remained on the DL and was merely a spectator for the whole second half.

consequently, this was a bit of a challenge for me because i've never previously written a second half blog where Michael literally had no statistics, so there was no template for me to go by. that said, i did manage to write it and filled in whatever sections i could. honestly, this post is more for documentation purposes than anything else, so if it has no appeal to you, i understand. more blogs will be published as the week continues, and hopefully those will pique your interest.


post-All Star Break in 2016, Michael had no numbers of any kind.

2nd Half 2016 batting average:
N/A

OBP: N/A

SLG: N/A

OPS: N/A


2nd Half of July BA: N/A

August BA: N/A

September/October BA: N/A


Michael does not have a batting average for the second half since he didn't play, so it can't be ranked among the team. Jose Ramirez led the qualifying Indians players in the second half with his .329 batting average.


Quick Overview

the Indians played 73 games in the second half of 2016. Michael played zero and the Indians went 42-31 without him. just like i'm sure everybody drew it up. [insert sad face here.] let me explain how that frustrating and unexpected reality transpired because the optimism coming into this half of the year was very high.

when the MLB All Star Break commenced on July 11, Michael had just begun his minor league rehab assignment. he played four games every other day with three different teams and claimed to be feeling great. here i thought Michael would come off the 60-Day DL and meet up with the Tribe on their road trip shortly after the Break was over. unfortunately, following that fourth rehab game on July 17, he was shut down because, once again, he was feeling right shoulder discomfort in the follow-through of his swing. he had one MRI on July 20 and an enhanced MRI on July 21 before undergoing a hydrodissection procedure to break up scar tissue along the biceps tendon. it didn't take him long to rebound from that and by July 25, Michael was already hitting off a pitching machine in the indoor batting cage.

fast-forward to August 3 and Michael had advanced to hitting off live pitching outside on the field. at that point, there was major speculation that he would soon go back out on his minor league rehab assignment. regrettably, that was premature. on August 8, it became known that he hit another roadblock in his comeback due to the return of the pain in his extension. Michael saw a doctor in NYC who diagnosed him with chronic right biceps tendinitis. after weighing their options, Terry Francona announced on August 13 that Michael would be having surgery in two days in Dallas, Texas, effectively ending his rehab and 2016 season. the biceps tenodesis procedure--essentially cutting the biceps tendon and relocating it within the shoulder--went well according to the two doctors who operated on him. his recovery was said to take four months which should put him on pace to be ready by spring training 2017.

never in my wildest dreams could i have imagined how this year would turn out for Michael. when the biceps tendinitis first popped up, i assumed that with a little more rest and a slower rehab, he'd be able to rejoin the Indians sometime prior to the season's conclusion. but he was just never able to overcome his biceps tendon discomfort. and that's not his fault, but it's very disheartening. he did everything he possibly could have done and was told to do, so it's disappointing to see the end result ultimately be a lost season for him. i'm hopeful that this surgery now will take care of all of his shoulder/biceps issues. him having a full offseason to recover from it should help as well. i highly anticipate Michael experiencing a normal spring next year, i desperately await the day i can watch him play again, and i'm already anxious to see what he's gonna do during the 2017 regular season.

for more details about Michael's surgery and his battle with biceps tendinitis after the All Star Break, you can refer back to these blogs:
Brantley's July 2016 (w/ Rehab Game Details)
Brantley To Have Season-Ending Right Shoulder Surgery
Brantley Undergoes Biceps Tenodesis, Recovery Will Take 4 Months
What Is Biceps Tenodesis?
Brantley's May - August 2016 DL Stint Updates & Rehab Game Details
Brantley's July 2016 Minor League Rehab #s (2nd DL Stint)
Brantley's Overall 2016 Minor League Rehab #s
Brantley's August 2016 (w/ Post-Surgery Interview)
Brantley's September/October 2016 (w/ Sling Updates)


Team Leads, Career Highs, & League Rankings

in the second half of 2016, Michael did not have any team leads, career highs, or league rankings because he did not play any MLB games after the All Star Break.


Versus AL Central Division Teams

when the Indians played the Minnesota Twins, Michael was still on the disabled list and missed all 13 games/4 series against this team in the second half. he missed 3 games while on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis/out on a minor league rehab assignment with the Akron RubberDucks; he missed 4 games while on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis and was hitting off a pitching machine before advancing to hitting live pitching on the field; and he missed 6 games/2 series while on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis (surgery).

when the Indians played the Kansas City Royals, Michael was still on the disabled list and missed all 9 games/3 series against this team in the second half. he missed 3 games while on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis and went for an MRI after his minor league rehab assignment had just been put on hold due to him feeling right shoulder discomfort in the follow-through of his swing; and he missed 6 games/2 series while on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis.

when the Indians played the Chicago White Sox, Michael was still on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis. he missed all 10 games/3 series (3 games/4 games/3 games per series) against this team in the second half.

when the Indians played the Detroit Tigers, Michael was still on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis. he missed all 6 games/2 series against this team in the second half. (note: 1 game in the final series was postponed and not made up.)


Interleague Play

Michael did not play any of the scheduled 7 games against National League teams after the All Star Break, and therefore did not register a batting average in Interleague Play in the second half of 2016.

when the Indians played the Washington Nationals at Progressive Field and Nationals Park (no designated hitter allowed in the latter), Michael was on the 60-Day DL and missed all 4 games/2 series in the second half. he missed 2 games in the first (July) series with right biceps tendinitis and had just resumed swinging in the indoor cage after a hydrodissection procedure and three-day shutdown period. he also missed 2 games in the second (August) series with a recent diagnosis of chronic right biceps tendinitis and had been shut down from his rehabilitation.

when the Indians played the Miami Marlins at Progressive Field, Michael was still on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis (surgery). he missed all 3 games in this series in the second half.



this is normally where i break down the numbers, but since there are no numbers, here's what i got for ya.

2nd Half 2016 batting average: N/A

OBP: N/A

SLG: N/A

OPS: N/A


Michael played in 0 (of 73*) games after the All Star Break.
(*the Indians originally had 74 games scheduled in the second half, but 1 game was postponed due to rain. MLB rescheduled it for the day after the regular season ended, but it was only to be played if the game would have any postseason implications. because the Indians won and the Boston Red Sox lost on the final day of the regular season, that secured the Indians home field advantage in the ALDS, AND also because the Detroit Tigers lost and were eliminated from the AL Wild Card race on the final day of the regular season, the PPD game became unnecessary and was officially cancelled.)

he missed 3 games while he was still on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis/out on a minor league rehab assignment.

he missed 3 games while he was still on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis after his rehab assignment was put on hold due to right shoulder discomfort in the follow-through of his swing.

he missed 3 games while he was still on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis after he underwent a hydrodissection procedure to remove scar tissue from his right biceps tendon and was shut down.

he missed 12 games while he was still on the 60-Day DL with right biceps tendinitis.

he missed 6 games while he was on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis.

he missed 46 games while he was still on the 60-Day DL with chronic right biceps tendinitis and recovering from season-ending biceps tenodesis (surgery).



now here are my game-by-game notes.

note: these game lines do not contain much specific day-to-day information while Michael was on the disabled list. in the past, i have included health news/progressions here in the form of game notes. but this year, because i was writing monthly blogs that provided very detailed DL updates, i didn't see a need to do that. you can refer back to the blogs linked above to read more about any of the succeeding second half occurrences.

**Michael began his minor league rehab assignment during the MLB All Star Break (July 11-14).**

Game /89, July 15: still on DL, on a minor league rehab assignment with the Akron RubberDucks.

Game /90, July 16: still on DL, late scratch, scheduled off day.

Game /91, July 17: still on DL, on a minor league rehab assignment with the Akron RubberDucks.

Game /92, July 18: still on DL, scheduled off day.

Game /93, July 19: still on DL, rehab now on hold due to discomfort in his follow-through.

Game /94, July 20: still on DL, shut down.

Game /95, July 22: still on DL, shut down after hydrodissection procedure and cortisone shot.

Game /96, July 23: still on DL, shut down.

Game /97, July 24: still on DL, shut down.

Game /98, July 26: still on DL.

Game /99, July 27: still on DL.

Game /100, July 29: still on DL.

Game /101, July 30: still on DL.

Game /102, July 31: still on DL.

Game /103, August 1: still on DL.

Game /104, August 2: still on DL.

Game /105, August 3: still on DL.

Game /106, August 4: still on DL.

Game /107, August 5: still on DL.

Game /108, August 6: still on DL.

Game /109, August 7: still on DL.

Game /110, August 9: still on DL.

Game /111, August 10: still on DL.

Game /112, August 11: still on DL.

Game /113, August 12: still on DL.

Game /114, August 13: still on DL, Indians announce he will have season-ending surgery on 8/15.

Game /115, August 14: still on DL, shut down.

Game /116, August 15: still on DL, underwent biceps tenodesis, done for the season.

Game /117, August 16: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /118, August 17: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /119, August 18: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /120, August 19: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /121, August 20: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /122, August 21: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /123, August 22: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /124, August 23: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /125, August 24: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /126, August 25: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /127, August 26: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /128, August 27: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /129, August 28: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /130, August 29: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /131, August 30: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /132, August 31: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /133, September 2: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /134, September 3: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /135, September 4: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /136, September 5: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /137, September 6: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /138, September 7: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /139, September 8: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /140, September 9: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /141, September 10: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /142, September 11: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /143, September 12: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /144, September 13: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /145, September 14: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /146, September 15: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /147, September 16: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /148, September 17: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /149, September 18: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /150, September 20: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /151, September 21: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /152, September 22: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /153, September 23: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /154, September 24: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /155, September 25: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /156, September 26: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /157, September 27: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /158, September 28: still on DL, done for the season.

September 29: game postponed, to be made up October 3 at 1:10 pm, only if game has postseason implications**.

Game /159, September 30: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /160, October 1: still on DL, done for the season.

Game /161, October 2: still on DL, done for the season.

**October 3: game not played because it was not necessary.



to see how Michael did in the 1st half of 2016 (when he actually played some games), you can read:
Brantley's First Half 2016 #s


be sure to come back tomorrow for another new blog:
Brantley's 2016 Game-by-Game Numbers & Notes


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and of course i will be tweeting any updates i see about Michael's recovery from surgery during the offseason as well. cross your fingers for nothing but positive news!