"Had we not been a playoff team, we maybe would have dealt with it three weeks ago," Mozeliak said of Molina's need for surgery. "But it shows you how tough he is and how willing he was to help us."
Molina, a seven-time All-Star, injured his thumb while making a swipe tag in a Sept. 20 game against the Cubs. He sat out the rest of the regular season before returning to the field for the National League Division Series against the Cubs with that thumb in a splint. He started and finished the first two games of the series before exiting for a pinch-hitter in the sixth inning of Game 3.