ARLINGTON, Texas -- When Ivan Rodriguez's right thumb crash-landed into the barrel of Mo Vaughn's bat, there went the last bit of hope from an already disastrous season for the Texas Rangers.

Losing the reigning AL MVP and the team's only All-Star for the rest of the season with a broken thumb on his throwing hand ended any remote chance of Texas retaining the AL West title it has won the last two years.

Rodriguez underwent a 1-hour, 20-minute operation Tuesday in Fort Worth by Dr. Bobby Wroten. He inserted three pins into the base of Rodriguez's thumb to hold three bone fragments.

Now, Rangers general manager Doug Melvin is getting more than consolation calls from his counterparts. With Texas 11½ games out before Tuesday night's game against Anaheim, contenders are combing Texas' roster in search of players to put them over the top.

John Wetteland, David Segui and Luis Alicea are the most likely to leave. All are free agents after this season, meaning the Rangers could lose them anyway. Dumping them now would bring something in return and help trim a payroll that's among the highest.

Wetteland, the MVP of the 1996 World Series with the Yankees, is the most attractive but teams may view him as a rent-a-reliever because he could wind up re-signing with Texas in the winter.

"I don't know where this leaves us," Melvin said following Rodriguez's injury Monday night. "All I know is it is a sad day."

Rodriguez was hurt in the first inning of a 6-5 loss to Anaheim while throwing to second base on Kevin Stocker's steal attempt.

Vaughn had swung and missed and was trying to duck out of the way, but his bat stayed up and Rodriguez caught it flush with his follow-through.

"As soon as it happened, my thumb went numb," Rodriguez said. "There was swelling and I knew it was broken and I'd be out for the season."

Doctors say the bone should be healed within 10 weeks and Rodriguez can resume athletic activity in 2-4 months. Unless something goes wrong, Rodriguez should make a full recovery.

"I have a strong mind," Rodriguez said. "I'll be ready for spring training."

The Rangers will play the next 65 games without Rodriguez, something that hasn't happened since early in 1991 when he was a pudgy 19-year-old at Double-A Tulsa. He was called up June 20 that year and started 81 of Texas' final 102 games.

Since then, Rodriguez has blossomed into the best all-around catcher of his generation and one of the all-time bests. The Rangers also have improved, going from also-rans to division champs three of the last four years.

Rodriguez came up with a laser arm and a weak bat. He steadily improved at the plate while winning eight straight Gold Glove awards for his performance behind it.

In 1999, he hit .332 with 35 homers, 25 steals and 113 RBI, all career-bests; his 116 runs tied his personal high. In winning the MVP, he sealed his place in baseball history alongside Johnny Bench, Yogi Berra and Bill Dickey.

By getting the most votes for this year's All-Star Game, Rodriguez also established himself as one of baseball's most popular players. And, he was on pace to have even better statistics than his MVP season.

Batting cleanup, Rodriguez was leading the team in hitting at .347 with 27 homers and 83 RBI, all among the top seven in the AL.

"I was having a strong season, so it's disappointing for it to end two months before it was supposed to," Rodriguez said. "I'll just go out and put up better numbers next year."

Rodriguez's absence leaves Rafael Palmeiro as the biggest threat in Texas' lineup, even though the first baseman is having a down year. He's likely to see fewer good pitches without Rodriguez hitting behind him.

In the field, Bill Haselman will take over as the starter. B.J. Wazgis, who has never played in the majors, was called up from Triple-A Oklahoma to be the backup.

If there's any bright spot to losing Rodriguez, it's that he won't continue beating up his body during a hot summer with little chance of making the playoffs.

Rodriguez had played 91 of 97 games this season and between 144 and 153 the last four years. Those are all high workloads for a catcher, even for someone 28 years old.

The injury also could make Rodriguez think more seriously about moving to another position, such as second base.

"We always take Pudge for granted that he's always going to be out there," Melvin said. "But you have to realize it can happen to anybody. You wonder which player your team can least afford to lose. He falls into that category."