Josh Hamilton

Veteran outfielder Josh Hamilton reached an agreement Tuesday to re-sign with the Texas Rangers. 

A month ago, it looked like the defending World Series champions, the Kansas City Royals, were nothing more than an afterthought in the playoff picture. As we prepare to head into the final month of baseball's regular season, though, the Royals sit in the thick of the AL playoff race.

But Kansas City isn't the only team making noise. Has an untimely injury knocked a contender out of the running? Does a slugger's desire to stay with his current team mean that he will?

We'll hit on all that and more in this week's edition of Fact or Fiction. 

The Texas Rangers have cut ties with Josh Hamilton after an injury-plagued season, although his career with the club might not be over.

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News explained the situation:

Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton will undergo another knee surgery on June 8 and miss the remainder of the 2016 season, per Jared Sandler of 105.3 The Fan in Dallas and Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

With the Texas Rangers less than one month away from reporting to spring training, outfielder Josh Hamilton is still dealing with lingering knee problems. 

Josh Hamilton avoided history on Sunday, and he'll sleep better because of it.

With a base hit in the fifth inning of the Texas Rangers' 5-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 3 of the American League Division Series, Hamilton snapped a 31-at-bat postseason hitless streak that dated back to 2011.

The injury bug often rears its mighty head at the most inopportune times in Major League Baseball. The optimism of a team can quickly disappear when a key player goes down. And when the injury warrants a lengthy recovering time—sometimes—that optimism is crushed completely.

With the 2015 MLB playoffs right around the corner, postseason contenders will have their fingers crossed that injuries will be avoided from here on out.

The Texas Rangers' depth took a considerable hit Thursday as it was announced outfielder Josh Hamilton will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery Friday, according to Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.  

Continue for updates.

Texas Rangers left fielder Josh Hamilton hasn't been able to work his way into a consistent rhythm during the 2015 season because of a string of injuries, and left knee inflammation will hinder him this time around, as it landed him on the 15-day disabled list on Aug. 20.

Continue for updates. 

Josh Hamilton's return to the Texas Rangers has been up and down, thanks in large part to injuries that keep preventing the former American League MVP from finding a groove. That's the case once again as he's dealing with knee soreness that has caused him to miss multiple games.

Continue for updates.