NEW YORK (AP) — José Berríos underwent a full Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, sidelining the veteran Toronto Blue Jays starter well into the 2027 season.
The Blue Jays hoped Berríos — who missed Toronto’s World Series run last fall with elbow inflammation — would need a less invasive surgery to repair a stress fracture and remove loose bodies from the right elbow.
But manager John Schneider said a loose body was found on the ligament, which necessitated the Tommy John procedure by Dr. Keith Meister in Texas.
“It’s kind of like, got an answer,” Schneider said before the Blue Jays faced the New York Yankees. “It sucks for him, it sucks for us. I know he’ll attack the rehab. It’s just the time part of it sucks. Not having him here sucks, too.”
Berríos, 31, appeared healthy at the start of spring training. But he opened the season on the injured list with the stress fracture and posted a 10.67 ERA while displaying reduced velocity and battling a sore elbow in four rehab starts.
“When you have something, guys are usually OK when its not surgically (repaired) initially,” Schneider said. “Really didn’t see this coming.”
Berríos and teammate Patrick Corbin are the only pitchers to make at least 30 starts in each of the last seven full seasons, since 2018. Berríos, in the fifth year of a seven-year deal signed in November 2021, is 53-39 with a 4.09 ERA since being acquired from the Minnesota Twins in July 2021.
“Since we acquired him, he’s just been steady, he’s been kind of part of what we’re doing and reliable, obviously,” Schneider said. “It’s weird not having him. I think that we were looking for him to kind of just get back to normal a little bit. And he was hoping for that, too.”
Berríos’ season-ending surgery is another blow to an injury-battered Toronto rotation. Shane Bieber has yet to make a start this season due to right forearm stiffness. Cody Ponce, who signed with the Blue Jays after four seasons in Japan, suffered a season-ending right knee injury in his first start March 30. Bowden Francis, who made 27 starts the previous two seasons, underwent Tommy John surgery in February.
Veteran Max Scherzer has been limited to five starts by forearm and ankle injuries while Trey Yesavage, a rookie sensation in the playoffs last year, was slated to make his fifth start Wednesday after missing the first month with a right shoulder impingement.
Schneider said Scherzer is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Thursday while Bieber could begin a rehab stint next week. Bieber would likely need at least four or five starts before he becomes an option for the Blue Jays, who entered Wednesday at 21-27 and 11 1/2 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East.
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FILE - Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jose Berrios reacts after giving up a two-run home run to Philadelphia Phillies' Kody Clemens during the second inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, May 7, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)
MOUNTAINAIR, N.M. (AP) — Three people are dead and more than a dozen first responders had to be quarantined and assessed Wednesday for possible exposure to an unidentified substance after being called to a suspected drug overdose at a rural New Mexico home, authorities said.
New Mexico State Police said three of the four people who were found unresponsive inside the home east of Albuquerque died. The fourth was being treated at a hospital in Albuquerque.
During the response, authorities said, first responders were exposed to the substance and began experiencing symptoms including nausea and dizziness.
Officials at University of New Mexico Hospital confirmed that 23 patients who were exposed to an unknown substance were assessed and decontaminated after being transported to the hospital. Most of those were first responders who were showing no symptoms and were later discharged.
Medical teams continued to monitor three symptomatic patients Wednesday evening, according to the hospital.
Two first responders were listed in serious condition, said Officer Wilson Silver with New Mexico State Police.
Albuquerque Fire Rescue Hazmat teams were assisting at the scene in Mountainair, a rural community east of Albuquerque, in efforts to identify the substance involved.
“At this time, investigators believe the substance may be transmitted through contact and do not believe it to be airborne,” Silver said.
A police vehicle and yellow tape blocked a dirt road leading to the home.
While the investigation was ongoing, Mountainair Mayor Peter Nieto said in a social media post that indications were pointing toward drugs as a possible factor in the deaths at the home. He added that there was no threat to the public.
Residents, however, took to social media to voice their frustrations about drug use in the community and elsewhere.
The mayor said the town's law enforcement officers and first responders work every day to protect the community and respond to difficult situations.
“But the reality is that addiction and substance abuse are issues affecting communities all across our state and nation,” Nieto said. “There is no simple or immediate solution. Lasting change requires family support, accountability, education, and most importantly, individuals who are willing to accept help.”
Montoya Bryan reported from Albuquerque, New Mexico.
New Mexico State Police respond to home in Mountainair, N.M., where authorities say several people died Wednesday, May 20, 2026, and more than a dozen first responders were exposed to an unknown substance and later treated at a hospital. (AP Photo/Savannah Peters)
The University of New Mexico Hospital is seen on July 25, 2025, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)
A New Mexico State Police vehicle blocks off a neighborhood in Mountainair, N.M., where authorities say several people died Wednesday, May 20, 2026, and more than a dozen first responders were exposed to an unknown substance and later treated at a hospital. (AP Photo/Savannah Peters)
FILE - A New Mexico State Police emblem is displayed on podium during a news conference, March 16, 2024, in Albuquerque, N.M. (Jon Austria/The Albuquerque Journal via AP, File)
