FORT MYERS, Fla. — After letting go of a pitch on Monday afternoon during live batting practice, Pablo López was taken back in time. What he felt in his right elbow was, unfortunately, strikingly similar to what he had experienced during a bullpen session in October 2013.
Minnesota Twins pitcher Pablo Lopez warms up during a spring training baseball workout in Fort Myers, Fla., Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
“It felt like just something sharp happening where now I have a scar already,” the starting pitcher said.
López underwent Tommy John surgery as a teenage prospect and now, more than a decade later, he’s facing the prospect of a second Tommy John that would end his season before it started.
The Twins sent the pitcher for magnetic resonance imaging on Monday after López felt the elbow soreness. That imaging revealed a “significant tear” in his ulnar collateral ligament, general manager Jeremy Zoll said.
“It’s really disappointing news,” Zoll said. “You really feel for Pablo. As everyone knows, his work ethic, how much he cares about his body, his preparation is second to none.”
The 29-year-old will receive a second opinion from Dr. Keith Meister, an orthopedic surgeon based in Texas, in the coming days. Zoll said they expect to have full clarity on the injury within the next week or so but said that they understand that there is a “strong likelihood” that surgery is needed.
It’s a devastating blow for both the pitcher and the team. The injury happened on a day that had begun with optimism as new manager Derek Shelton and new executive chair Tom Pohlad led a team meeting Monday morning before the group began its first full-squad workout.
“Talk about going from 100 to a zero on the scale of being excited, being pumped, being just ultimately happy to be here and then you hear news like that,” López said. “(I’m) trying to navigate a lot of emotions.”
López said he hadn’t felt anything before that pitch and was hoping by shutting things down on Monday when he first felt pain, they perhaps had caught an issue before it developed into something worse.
Since he had his first Tommy John procedure, he knew there was a possibility of needing another one down the road. Once he got past the six-year mark, he was hoping he might be the exception. He was to some extent, making it 12 years before another significant injury to the elbow.
“Obviously you don’t want it to happen to anyone, but someone who’s working so hard and puts in so much time — he’s obviously here at the crack of dawn and just works his tail off,” fellow starter Joe Ryan said. “He just set such a good example for everyone, myself included. … It just sucks to lose him this early.”
The news came after a 2025 season in which López was also limited by injury. He made just 14 starts in 75 2/3 innings, limited by hamstring, shoulder and forearm issues.
After recovering from the forearm injury, which he suffered when making a fielding play near the end of the season, López had a productive offseason as he built himself up to compete this March in the World Baseball Classic. Not being able to play for Venezuela in the tournament adds on another layer of disappointment.
While he’s hoping the second opinion might just bring “some kind of miracle,” he’s also preparing himself for what is likely ahead, spending Monday night reading up on how the science and technology has advanced since he last underwent Tommy John surgery.
“We’re not designed to throw things that hard for an extended time,” he said. “Having done it once, I can do it again. Doesn’t mean I want to, but I’m going to have to, and I know I can.”
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