The Toronto Blue Jays are hoping to compete for a World Series appearance once again during the upcoming 2026 season. However, they received an unfortunate update on Wednesday. According to Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet, starting pitcher Jose Berrios has a stress fracture in his elbow.
“Following his meeting with Dr. Keith Meister, Jose Berrios has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right elbow,” Zwelling wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Berrios remains symptom-free and the plan is to resume throwing after a few days off. He won’t be ready for beginning of the season.”
Berrios was previously dealing with an arm injury concern. Now, the Blue Jays know exactly what he is battling. Berrios' injury is far from ideal, but it remains to be seen what Berrios' official return timeline is. The Blue Jays will closely monitor the situation.
Berrios, 31, pitched to a 4.17 ERA across 31 outings in 2025. A two-time All-Star, the Blue Jays were hoping he'd play a significant role in the rotation in 2026. While that could still happen, Toronto will have to look elsewhere to begin the year.
Kevin Gausman will start on Opening Day for the ball club. Dylan Cease, Max Scherzer, Cody Ponce and Trey Yesavage all may follow him in the starting rotation. The Blue Jays likely have enough pitching depth to find success, but Berrios will be missed nonetheless.
The team will continue to monitor and provide updates on his injury status as they are made available. For now, they will focus on their spring training game on Wednesday against the Baltimore Orioles.
