Danny Jansen's injury situation just got more complicated, and a decision on his season could come within the next few weeks.
The former Toronto Blue Jays catcher has been on the Texas Rangers' injured list since early June with what's reportedly a UCL injury of some significance in his forearm and elbow.
Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports Jansen has recently resumed throwing and is trying to determine whether he can play through it.
Jansen himself said he'll need to decide within the next two to three weeks whether to undergo an internal brace procedure, a surgery that would end his season entirely.
Position players typically recover faster than pitchers from this type of injury given the difference in throwing workload, and Grant suggests surgery now could still have Jansen ready for Opening Day 2027.
This season has already been a struggle for the 31-year-old, who's in the first year of a two-year, $14.5 million deal. He posted just a .171/.277/.309 line across 142 plate appearances before landing on the IL.
His underlying numbers suggest the elbow was bothering him well before the official injury designation, with a .211/.282/.380 line through May 1 collapsing into a brutal .115/.270/.212 stretch over his final 64 plate appearances.
Why the timing hits Texas especially hard
Fellow Rangers catcher Kyle Higashioka just landed on the injured list too, leaving Texas relying on journeymen Elias Diaz and Austin Wynns behind the plate.
That's a shaky pairing for a team at 51-51, jostling with Seattle for the AL West lead while Houston has rallied back into both the division and wild card picture.
Texas plays seven of its final 10 games before the deadline against the Mariners and Astros, a stretch that could shape whether the front office buys or sells entirely.
It's a bit like a company delaying a major decision until seeing how the next few weeks of sales numbers actually play out.
Does Jansen's elbow issue push Texas toward adding catching help at the deadline regardless of how this stretch goes, or does the team's own performance over these 10 games determine every move that follows?
For Blue Jays fans who remember Jansen fondly from his time in Toronto, this latest update is a reminder of how quickly injuries can complicate even a fresh start elsewhere.
Should Danny Jansen have season-ending surgery now rather than try to play through the injury?
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