Yankees Suffer Concerning New Injury Against Blue Jays

New York Yankees left-hander Ryan Weathers left Saturday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth inning, walking off the mound with a trainer and prompting immediate concern about his availability for the stretch run.

Weathers departed after throwing his final pitch to Myles Straw. He did not take any warmup throws before heading to the dugout, and right-hander Yerry de los Santos came on in relief, according to Yankees beat reporter Bryan Hoch.

No official word on the nature of the issue had come from the club as the game continued. People watching the outing noted what appeared to be a possible problem with the lower half of Weathers’ body, an unusual release on one of his sweepers and a dip in velocity toward the end of his work. The Yankees have not confirmed any of those observations.

The timing could hardly be worse for New York. The team sits in the thick of a tight American League East race, and Weathers had settled in as one of the more dependable pieces in the starting rotation during recent weeks.

Weathers entered the afternoon with a 5-7 record and a 3.56 ERA across a career-high 134 innings in 24 starts, per MLB.com. He had been particularly effective of late, working 7 1/3 innings and allowing just one run against this same Blue Jays club on Aug. 16. Over his previous 31 2/3 innings, he had surrendered only three earned runs, dropping his ERA under 3.00 for a stretch.

That improved stretch came after Weathers made a mechanical change. He cut back on a four-seam fastball that batters had been punishing and instead leaned more heavily on his sinker, slider and changeup. The adjustment produced more ground balls and helped steady a season that began with some early struggles.

Weathers has a history of arm and lower-body setbacks. A finger strain kept him out for roughly three months in 2024. While with the Miami Marlins in 2025, separate forearm and lat issues limited him to just eight starts. That background makes Saturday’s early exit especially noteworthy as the Yankees’ medical staff evaluates whether this is a minor hiccup or something more serious.

An update on his status is expected in the coming hours.

A longer absence would put pressure on a rotation already dealing with limited healthy options. Gerrit Cole, Cam Schlittler and Carlos Rodón — the latter recently returned from elbow inflammation — have shouldered much of the load alongside Weathers and Will Warren.

Max Fried remains on the 15-day injured list with an elbow bone bruise. Clarke Schmidt continues working his way back from elbow and UCL problems and is expected to be restricted to relief appearances even after he returns.

New York began the day at 73-55 and in second place in the AL East, with a playoff spot clearly within reach. Losing a starter who had become a solid mid-rotation contributor would test a staff that has already absorbed several pitching injuries this year. If Weathers ends up on the injured list, manager Aaron Boone could turn more often to Warren or summon a Triple-A option such as Elmer Rodríguez or Brendan Beck for a temporary start.

The Yankees obtained Weathers from the Marlins in a January trade, dealing outfielders Dillon Lewis and Brendan Jones plus infielders Dylan Jasso and Juan Matheus to Miami.

Selected seventh overall by the San Diego Padres in the 2018 draft, Weathers reached the majors during the 2020 postseason and became one of the youngest pitchers to appear in a playoff game. He is the son of former major league pitcher David Weathers, who spent portions of two seasons with the Yankees in the 1990s.

As the club waits for further medical details, the focus remains on how New York will navigate the next few days and weeks with one of its reliable arms suddenly unavailable.