Willie Calhoun broke his jaw four months ago

Four months ago today, on March 8, 2020, Willie Calhoun was hit in the face by a pitch from Julio Urias of the Los Angeles Dodgers during a spring training game. Calhoun went down and stayed down for a while, left the field on a cart, went to the hospital, and was determined to have a fractured jaw.

The reaction when that happened was as if the entire fanbase had been punched in the gut. Calhoun was having a solid spring and was slated to be the team’s Opening Day left fielder, having finally claimed a lineup spot that had been denied him the previous couple of years. After a strong second half of 2019 it seemed like Calhoun was ready to establish himself as a legitimate offensive weapon, a middle-of-the-order bat who could make hard contact, get on base and hit for some power. And what was seen as a potential breakout year for Calhoun suddenly was in jeopardy — delayed, at a minimum — due to a fluke injury. After surgery the next day the news was more positive — Calhoun didn’t have to have his jaw wired shut, which was good — but still, it appeared that he would miss significant time to start the season.

Little did we know.

It seems so strange that Calhoun’s injury was just four months ago. It was the last major bit of Rangers news pre-shutdown, and it almost feels like now that it happened, not just longer ago than four months, but in some other timeline altogether. It seems more like something from history I once read about, or that I vaguely remember in the distant past.

Perception of time is a weird thing.