The Blue Jays will officially be without one of their veteran arms for all of 2026 and likely most of 2027 as well.
Right-hander José Berríos underwent full Tommy John surgery on Wednesday, manager John Schneider announced. Pitchers who undergo a Tommy John procedure are typically given a 12-to-18-month recovery timeline.
Berríos was originally scheduled for a procedure to address a stress fracture in his pitching elbow and remove bone chips on Wednesday, but Dr. Keith Meister determined Berríos’ UCL was damaged and in need of repair.
The righty was initially diagnosed with the fracture in March, preventing him from pitching for Team Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic. Berríos planned to pitch through the pain and made four Minor League rehab starts, but he felt more soreness than usual during a May 3 rehab outing with Triple-A Buffalo and underwent an MRI. After that exam, the Blue Jays chose to have the pitcher meet with Meister.
Berríos landed on the injured list at the end of the 2025 regular season with the elbow issue and did not appear in the postseason, choosing to be away from the team for the World Series -- a decision he later apologized for. Acquired from the Twins in a 2021 Trade Deadline deal, Berríos had a 4.17 ERA in 30 starts in 2025, pitching 166 innings for Toronto. His seven-year, $131 million extension with the Blue Jays runs through the end of 2027.
The news is the latest blow to a Toronto club hit hard by injuries in 2026, particularly in the rotation. Cody Ponce suffered a season-ending ACL injury in his club debut, Shane Bieber is on the 60-day injured list with elbow inflammation, and Max Scherzer has been out since late April with right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation.