Blue Jays Early Spring Injury Updates

[Leo Morgenstern]

Nothing signals the start of spring training like a barrage of injury news. Pitchers and catchers report to camp today, and that means Blue Jays reporters started showing up to Dunedin earlier this week. Once they did, it wasn't long before injury updates were thrust upon us.

The big news yesterday was that Anthony Santander could miss the next five to six months recovering from shoulder surgery. However, Santander isn't the only Blue Jay undergoing major surgery. Manager John Schneider revealed that right-hander Bowden Francis needs UCL reconstruction and will miss the 2026 season. It's not yet clear if he's going for Tommy John or the less invasive internal brace procedure, but either way, he's out for the year. 

Schneider also offered a concerning update regarding right-hander Shane Bieber. The 2020 AL Cy Young winner will begin the season on the injured list, as he's dealing with forearm fatigue right now. On the bright side, it doesn't seem as if he'll miss significant time; he hasn't been shut down from baseball activities, he just won't be able to ramp up in time for Opening Day. With that said, forearm issues are always worrisome, and especially so for a pitcher who only just returned from Tommy John surgery. 

Given Bieber's status, it's hardly surprising that Eric Lauer will be stretched out as a starter this spring. For as long as Bieber is out, Lauer will be the sixth man on Toronto's starting pitching depth chart – a depth chart that's also thinner without Francis as an emergency backup plan.  

John Schneider also spoke about Yimi García, whose 2025 season concluded before the All-Star break. While an ankle injury sent him to the shelf, it was ulnar nerve symptoms that stopped him from making a return. He had season-ending surgery to address the issue in August. On top of that, he also missed time with a shoulder injury earlier in the year. 

According to Schneider, García is on track to make the Opening Day roster, though the team is still exercising caution with the 35-year-old righty. 

Finally, Toronto's skipper spoke about the many injury issues George Springer played through in 2025. While we already knew about some of them, Schneider told Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith that right wrist discomfort became a problem for the veteran as the year went on.

 

Apparently, the injury interfered with his throwing, therefore making it difficult for him to play the outfield. Now that he's feeling stronger, however, Springer could see time in the outfield again. Of course, with Santander on the shelf, it might make sense for Springer to be a full-time DH in 2026 anyway, but more flexibility is never a bad thing.

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Bieber's progression

Shane Bieber describes the five appearances and 18.2 innings he logged during the post-season a year ago as “the most intense innings I've ever thrown.” Which is why, jumping into the fray after Tommy John surgery, “it makes sense” to him why he’s experiencing forearm fatigue.

“I was just advised to take a little bit of time off and take it slow, and these things take time,” said Bieber. “I'm still not even two years out from TJ, and so it makes sense that there's fatigue there. That's what everybody advised me to do. Dr. (Keith) Meister was just saying to me, take some time, take time through your progression. Everything's cleared out, I'm throwing, I'm feeling good, and ultimately, I'm excited to be here with the boys and be back this season.”

Bieber’s back with the Blue Jays after exercising his $16 million player option, foregoing free agency and a $4 million buyout. 

“I wanted to be back here. My family wanted to be back here,” he said of the decision, and he replied “no,” when asked if he felt anything that concerned him during the post-season or afterwards. 

“At the same time, it was my first time going through TJ, first time pitching that deep in the post-season, there were a lot of new elements, right? A lot of new factors,” he continued. “It all makes sense, and happy to have a plan going forward and feeling good right now. “

For now, that plan has him in a long-toss progression after a rehab-centric off-season that’s left him, “in a sense, just playing catch-up a little bit.”

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He knows he won’t be ready for Opening Day, but he had few specifics about when he might be good to go beyond that.

“They do a good job of trying to keep me week-to-week,” he said. “Ultimately, I'm just going to bed every night feeling happy that I feel good within my progression. We're going to take it slow and be smart. It's about not how you start, but how you finish, and we definitely know that judging off of last year. I know this group's hungry. I'm extremely hungry, and I can't wait to get back there.”