LAKELAND, FL – Right-hander Reese Olson could’ve had shoulder surgery in October, when he reinjured his right shoulder as the Detroit Tigers were competing in the postseason.
Instead, Olson waited until early February, after gathering the opinions of several doctors.
He will miss the entire 2026 season.
“Having surgery now versus having surgery in October, I still would have missed this full season and still be expected for right around Opening Day next year,” said Olson, who missed time in both 2024 and 2025 with shoulder injuries, “so that was the thought process in not doing surgery in October.”
On Feb. 2, Olson underwent right shoulder labral repair surgery, with Dr. Keith Meister performing the procedure. He attempted to rehab throughout the offseason, but setbacks while preparing for spring training ultimately led to surgery.
The issue flared up again when he played catch from 120 feet.
“I’ve missed time the past two years, and I’m going to miss a full year now,” Olson said. “It’s super-frustrating. But now I’ve got this full year to figure out what my shoulder needs and what my body needs to stay healthy. I’ll change routines and change everything to make sure that the past two years doesn’t happen again, to where I can be healthy from here on out.”
In 2025, Olson posted a 3.15 ERA with 25 walks and 65 strikeouts across 68⅔ innings in 13 starts. He made two trips to the injured list, suffering from right ring finger inflammation in mid-May and a right shoulder strain in late July.
After surgery, Olson sought advice from teammates such as left-hander Tarik Skubal, right-hander Casey Mize and right-hander Jackson Jobe. All three pitchers needed major elbow surgeries, but none had a shoulder procedure like Olson. Still, Skubal and Mize understand the mental challenges of a lengthy rehab process, as do others in the Tigers’ clubhouse.
“They tell you to just attack every day, attack rehab,” Olson said. “You got to make it fun because some days are boring and the same thing over and over again.”
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As part of his recovery, Olson is required to wear a sling on his right arm at the facility and while sleeping, though he can remove it at home when he’s awake. He has a couple more weeks before he can ditch the sling entirely.
It has impacted his life outside of baseball.
“Brushing teeth and stuff was tough for the first few times,” Olson said. “It’s frustrating, but I’m getting used to it.”
Olson will spend all of 2026 rehabbing at the Tigers’ spring training complex in Lakeland, rather than joining the Tigers at Comerica Park in Detroit.
He expects to be ready for Opening Day 2027.
“It’s nice to be in my boring part of rehab when I’m not doing much during spring, when everyone’s here,” Olson said. “Once the guys leave is when I’ll start ramping up and doing more stuff. It’s nice to have them here for this part.”
Olson, who turns 27 in late July, owns a 3.60 ERA over his three-year MLB career, spanning 56 games (53 starts). He has been limited to 35 starts in the 2024 and 2025 seasons, well short of the potential 65 starts had he avoided the injured list.
It’s a long journey ahead.
But the timeline wouldn’t have changed had Olson undergone surgery in October instead of February.
“No matter what, now with this surgery, if everything goes according to plan, I’ll be good for Opening Day next season,” Olson said. “That’s why we tried to rehab to avoid surgery.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why didn’t Reese Olson get surgery in 2025? He explains 4-month wait
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
