Jackson Jobe needs Tommy John surgery in huge Tigers injury blow
The Tigers will be without one of their budding young stars for the rest of the year — and likely more.
Right-hander Jackson Jobe will undergo Tommy John surgery, the team announced Wednesday in what is a crusher for its rotation.
Dr. Keith Meister, team physician and orthopedic consultant for the Texas Rangers, will perform the operation, which had not been scheduled yet.
“It’s obviously really disappointing news,” Tigers general manager Jeff Greenberg said. “Really feel for Jackson. Obviously everybody sees the talent, and he made a really positive impression to this team in his short time here. He’s going to work through this. He’s a very determined individual.”
Jobe, 22, was placed on the 15-day IL at the end of May with a flexor strain, but now he will miss the last four months of 2025 and some of the 2026 season.
“As is standard process in our medical evaluation process, we sought additional evaluations,” Greenberg said. “Through that evaluation process, a UCL injury was also discovered. From there, there were a series of conversations between Jackson, the doctors and the medical staff, and ultimately surgery was determined as the path.”
The third overall pick in the 2021 draft made his big league debut at the end of last season as the Tigers made an improbable run into the postseason as a wild-card entrant.
He threw two scoreless outings in the regular season before throwing 1²/₃ frames in the postseason, yielding three runs.
Through 10 starts this year, Jobe had a 4.22 ERA with a 1.49 WHIP but showed off a high-velocity fastball that averaged 96.1 mph and sat in the 81st percentile in the big leagues, according to Baseball Savant.
In his final start on May 28 against the Giants, though, Jobe’s fastball went from 97 mph to the 91-92 mph range by the time he exited in the fifth inning.
“When he came out of his outing, he reported that he had a little bit of soreness,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters at the time. “We took him immediately to get evaluated.”
Detroit, sitting at 44-24 and eight games up in the AL Central, still boast one of baseball’s best pitching staffs, which is led by 2024 Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.
The Tigers’ starting pitching ranks third in MLB in both ERA (3.08) and WHIP (1.13).
— with AP
