Tigers' Reese Olson Out for 2026 Season After Shoulder Surgery

Detroit manager A.J. Hinch discusses the impact of losing the young right-hander for the year.

Published on Feb. 13, 2026

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Detroit Tigers pitcher Reese Olson underwent right shoulder labral repair surgery on February 2, ruling him out for the entire 2026 MLB season. The 26-year-old had been dealing with recurring shoulder issues over the past two seasons, limiting him to just 35 starts and 181 innings combined in 2024 and 2025.

Why it matters

Olson had emerged as a reliable and effective starter for the Tigers when healthy, posting a 3.15 ERA with a 22.8% strikeout rate in 2025. His absence creates a significant innings gap in the Detroit rotation, underscoring the team's need to add depth this offseason.

The details

Despite the limited workload, Olson was productive when on the mound, posting a 3.15 ERA, 8.8% walk rate, and 22.8% strikeout rate in 68⅔ innings across 13 starts in 2025. Tigers manager A.J. Hinch acknowledged the 'really big loss' of Olson, who he described as 'sneaky underrated' when healthy.

  • Olson underwent shoulder surgery on February 2, 2026.
  • He missed significant time in both the 2024 and 2025 seasons due to recurring shoulder issues.

The players

Reese Olson

A 26-year-old right-handed pitcher for the Detroit Tigers who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery.

A.J. Hinch

The manager of the Detroit Tigers, who discussed the impact of losing Olson for the 2026 season.

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What they’re saying

“I feel for him. He's had a really hard time. As much as we talk about the additions, it's a really big loss. He's sneaky underrated when it comes to people not talking about him a ton in our rotation, and when we've had him on the mound, he's been really, really good.”

— A.J. Hinch, Manager, Detroit Tigers (Detroit Free Press)

What’s next

The Tigers will need to adjust their rotation plans for the 2026 season without Olson, who is expected to focus on a full recovery in order to make a fresh start in 2027.

The takeaway

Olson's season-ending surgery is a significant blow to the Tigers' rotation depth, but it also highlights the team's need to build a resilient pitching staff that can withstand injuries. The Tigers will look to their offseason additions to help fill the void left by Olson's absence in 2026.