The Toronto Blue Jays suffered a gut punch at the beginning of spring training when manager John Schneider revealed that switch-hitter Anthony Santander is going to miss five or six months because of labrum surgery. There's a chance that Santander, who signed a five-year deal before the start of the 2025 season, could miss the entire campaign.

It's been an incredibly disappointing start to that contract for both player and team as Santander played only 54 games last season with a shoulder issue. He hit just .175 and had only six home runs. 

While the Blue Jays proved they could still win without him en route to a World Series appearance in 2025, they were counting on his offense to help them in 2026. His offense appeared to be extra important in the wake of Bo Bichette's free agency departure and after the team missed out on Kyle Tucker. Santander hit 44 home runs with the Baltimore Orioles in 2024.

Now, without him, there are questions about how Schneider will maneuver the lineup on a daily basis. Toronto just recently traded for Jesus Sanchez and will have Daulton Varsho, Myles Straw, Davis Schneider and Addison Barger as additional outfield options.

Speaking at spring training on Wednesday morning, Santander discussed his health with reporters.

Per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet:

Meeting with writers this morning, Anthony Santander says his left shoulder felt fine until he started hitting again in January. Felt a pain similar to when he first injured shoulder last May. Gave it a rest, resumed, continued to feel it, had MRI and then surgery.

Because of the looming labor issues in 2027, there's a very real chance that the Jays go a majority of three years without getting much of a return on investment from Santander. He signed a $92.5 million deal with Toronto, which may not seem like much after the team spent on Dylan Cease and shelled out nearly $350 million in guaranteed money this offseason, but it is.

--Players will begin leaving for the World Baseball Classic around March 1, making the first 1.5 weeks of Grapefruit League play important for Jays regulars. Kazuma Okamoto in particular figures to play a lot so that the coaching staff can get a look at him in action before he heads off to play for Team Japan.

--After spending much of the last three seasons injured, Ricky Tiedemann is back and ready to contribute. Might he be a major league option in 2026?

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