Blue Jays, Jose Berrios Face More Unknown with Surgery Date Set

The Toronto Blue Jays have made it official — José Berríos will undergo surgery.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider made the announcement before Saturday’s game. The procedure will take place on Wednesday. This comes less than a week after the right-hander met with Dr. Keith Meister, one of the game’s foremost surgeons when it comes to Tommy John surgery and its associated hybrid procedures.

But a Tommy John procedure isn’t necessarily on the table.

José Berríos Heads for Surgery

Schneider said that Berríos is going to have surgery on his fractured right elbow and potential loose bodies, according to MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson. He didn’t report who will do the surgery and it’s not clear if there will be any repairs to the ligaments in Berríos’ right elbow.

“There may be some ligament stuff going on. They’re going to figure that out when they’re in there,” Schneider said.

News: José Berríos will undergo right elbow surgery on Wednesday. It will treat his fractured right elbow and potential loose bodies, but Schneider adds:

“There may be some ligament stuff going on. They’re going to figure that out when they’re in there.” #BlueJays
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) May 16, 2026

That’s not uncommon in cases like this where ligament damage is unclear. Even in cases where ligament damage is clear, surgeons usually finalize what type of procedure is needed after opening the arm. The patient is fully briefed on the possibilities. Berríos is going into this procedure knowing that some kind of ligament repair is possible.

Berríos was first diagnosed with inflammation in his throwing elbow in March after he underwent an MRI. At the time, he was hoping to pitch for his native Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, where he part of the team’s designated pitcher pool after the completion of pool play. More imaging and examination revealed he had a stress fracture in the right forearm and was shut down for the rest of the spring.

He’s pitched in four rehab games in the minor leagues, where he went 0-1 with a 10.67 ERA. He struck out 11 and walked seven in 14.1 innings while batters hit .322 against him. He suffered a setback in his last rehab game which compelled the Blue Jays’ medical staff to do more examination.

There is no clear timeline for his return. It’s possible that his season is over. Berríos is under contract with Toronto through 2028.

Toronto had incredible depth in the rotation to start the season, but injuries have sapped it. Along with Berríos, Max Scherzer is on the 15-day IL with right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation, Shane Bieber is on the 60-day IL with right elbow inflammation and Cody Ponce is on the 60-day IL after a right knee ACL sprain that led to surgery. Ponce is expected to miss most, if not all of the season.

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