Yankees’ Luke Voit is glad he got knee surgery: ‘I am just done playing hurt’
Luke Voit talked to three doctors and still agonized over the decision to have surgery on his knee. The 2020 Home Run King said Wednesday he was torn about missing time to start the season, but thought he made the right decision.
“I feel good and I’m glad I got it done,” Voit said. “It was something that popped up early in spring and just kind of got better as we went on, but it just didn’t feel right and that’s why I decided I wanted to do the MRI. I had the surgery on Monday night. It was great, everything was good. I feel good today, obviously there is progress, but no timetable yet. I expect to be back pretty quick, so I’m gonna do everything in my power to get back as fast as possible.”
Voit clubbed 22 home runs to lead baseball (in the coronavirus pandemic-shortened 2020 season) with plantar fasciitis last season.
“It was tough. I got the MRI Friday and obviously I had three opinions from three different doctors and it was either cortisone and drain it and I’ll probably have to do that a couple more times during the season and I didn’t want to play hurt after last year with playing with that foot injury,” Voit said. “I am just done playing hurt and I wanted to play 100% and I feel like it was the right thing. I think I could have made it worse to where I could have been out a lot longer than what I will be for this. So I’m glad I got it done.”
Voit described it as a “nagging,” issue that bothered him in the field when he tried to hold a runner on first. It would feel good one day and then he would wake up in pain the next. Not only did he play through foot pain in 2020, but Voit tried to play through what was eventually ruled a sports hernia in 2019.
“It’s really frustrating and I really pride myself on taking care of myself and luckily it’s not something more serious,” Voit said. “Yeah I know it’s three years in a row. It’s frustrating and I just have to take the positives and try to get back as fast as I can and be smart too.”
