Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Anthony Santander will undergo surgery to repair the labrum in his left shoulder on Wednesday and is expected to be sidelined five to six months, manager John Schneider said Tuesday.
“He was resting and rehabbing in November and December, then he kind of had a setback when he started ramping up with his hitting earlier in January,” Schneider said, according to MLB.com. “He came over to the complex, got checked out and did everything we could to avoid this. At this point, after what we dealt with last year and in talking with Tony, this is the best possible way to get him back to 100 percent. This is unfortunate timing, obviously.”
It was one of several injury updates given by Schneider, who also said right-hander Shane Bieber won’t be ready to start the season as he is dealing with forearm fatigue. In addition, right-hander Bowden Francis will miss the 2026 season after undergoing UCL reconstruction surgery.
Santander is entering his second season with the Blue Jays after signing a five-year, $92.5 million contract in free agency last year after an All-Star season for the Baltimore Orioles in 2024 when he set career bests with 44 home runs and 102 RBIs.
He missed almost four months last season because of a left shoulder injury and hit just .175 with 6 home runs and 18 RBIs in 54 games. He was limited to just five games — hitting .200 (3 for 15) with no homers and 2 RBIs — during the postseason and was replaced on the Blue Jays’ ALCS roster because of a back injury.
