José Berrios and John Schneider are back in wait-and-see mode after the Blue Jays said the right-hander will undergo an MRI on his elbow Tuesday night.
That is a sharp turn from where this looked only a few days ago. Toronto had Berrios lined up for what was expected to be his final rehab step before a likely return from the injured list.
Instead, Schneider said Berrios felt a little more sore than usual after his rehab start Sunday. That was enough to send the Blue Jays back to imaging, with the manager admitting the club is “kind of crossing our fingers.”
The timing is what makes this hit harder. MLB.com’s Blue Jays injury tracker listed Berrios’ expected return as early May and said he would likely come back after 1 more rehab outing at Triple-A Buffalo.
Now that plan is on hold, and the MRI is the story. Until Toronto gets those results, there is no honest way to talk about Berrios as a near-term rotation fix.
That puts the focus right back on what the Blue Jays have been trying to manage since late March. Berrios has been on the injured list with a right elbow stress fracture after opening the season shut down.
For a pitcher who was supposed to be one of Toronto’s rotation anchors, that is a brutal spot to revisit. The club had finally started talking like his return was close enough to map out.
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Eric Lauer now stays in the picture
The most immediate consequence is simple. Eric Lauer is staying in the rotation for now because the Blue Jays cannot count on Berrios until the MRI says they can.
That is not a minor detail. Lauer opened 2026 as part of Toronto’s starting depth conversation, but Berrios was supposed to be one of the veteran arms carrying this staff once healthy.
So this is bigger than 1 sore elbow after 1 rehab outing. It changes the club’s next steps, its rotation planning, and the amount of pressure on the rest of the staff.
Schneider’s wording told the story. He did not talk like a manager expecting a quick formality before activation. He talked like someone who knows the Blue Jays may have another real hurdle in front of them.
That is why Tuesday’s MRI matters so much. Toronto was getting ready to bring José Berrios back into the fold. Now it is back to hoping the soreness is only a bump, not something that pushes his return farther off the board.
Should the Blue Jays keep José Berríos shut down until the MRI brings full clarity?
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