Outfielder Bubba Thompson, the Rangers top pick in the 2017 draft, will miss at least four weeks after undergoing surgery to remove a fractured hamate bone in his left hand. Thompson, 20, was off to a .121 start at Class A Down East before suffering the injury on Tuesday.

He will be replaced on the Down East roster by another top center field prospect: Julio Pablo Martinez. Martinez, 23, was hitting .250 at Class A Hickory. The Rangers signed Martinez in 2018 with a $2.8 million signing bonus from money they had remaining after Shohei Ohtani elected to go to the Los Angeles Angels instead of Arlington.

The hamate bone fracture is a common injury in baseball. The surgery simply requires removing the bone, which has no real practical application. The complication is in letting the sutures and the hand heal.

Rangers center fielder Delino DeShields tried to return from the injury last year in just three weeks and battled hand soreness for much of the year. Trying to expedite the recovery process may have played a role in his diminished offensive production.

"Don't rush it," DeShields said of Thompson's recovery. "You have to go through the whole process. It's supposed to be four to six weeks, and you have to trust that, even though you want to be out there as soon as possible. If you come back before you've got all your strength in your hand, it can impact a lot of things."