Jackson Jobe injury bombshell is as depressing as Tigers fans feared

Whenever a no-throw continues past the point of what seems reasonable, it's always fair to wonder if an initial diagnosis might not have been quite so accurate (or if the injury might've worsened during the silent downtime). Detroit Tigers rookie ace Jackson Jobe was initially diagnosed with a mild Grade 1 flexor strain after exiting his start against the San Francisco Giants in late May, but earlier this week, it was communicated that he wasn't yet cleared to resume throwing.

That seemed more than ominous enough to cue the next news drop, given the early optimism and resulting silence.

On Wednesday evening, the Tigers revealed that Jobe would be undergoing UCL surgery on his right elbow, which will abruptly end his season.

It wasn't immediately clear if that meant a full Tommy John procedure with 12-16 months of recovery time, or an internal brace solution, which might have Jobe ready closer to Opening Day of 2026. Initial reports are that the Tigers will go the more thorough route, according to Evan Petzold.

More information will likely be revealed when AJ Hinch and Jeff Greenberg meet the media after Wednesday's contest against the Orioles.

Detroit Tigers rookie ace Jackson Jobe to undergo UCL surgery, miss remainder of 2025 season

How will the Tigers replace Jobe? For now, they'll likely rely on the unique brand of pitching chaos that carried them down the stretch and into October last season; Brant Hurter has been essential lately, and both he and Sawyer Gipson-Long carried Detroit in Game 1 of this series. Casey Mize's breakout season will need to reach new heights. Jack Flaherty's return to stasis will have to continue. Tarik Skubal will simply need to maintain his ridiculous run of form.

But this certainly opens up an avenue for Detroit to add further to the rotation as the trade deadline approaches. This season's group of sellers isn't as immediately evident, and won't feature fits as obvious as last year's batch, highlighted by Garrett Crochet of the White Sox and ... well, Flaherty himself.

Above all else, this is wholeheartedly depressing for Jobe, who was called up last fall to get a far-too-short taste of the postseason atmosphere, and expected to carry the torch this time around.