Cole Sands' Frustrating Season Ends With Elbow Surgery

[Cody Christie]

For months, the Minnesota Twins hoped Cole Sands could finally put his injury troubles behind him. Every time it looked like the right-hander was nearing a return, another setback followed. Now, his frustrating 2026 season has officially come to an end.

The Twins announced that Sands will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow Tuesday, ending any chance of him pitching again this season. He'll also receive a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection, with the organization optimistic that the procedure will allow him to have a relatively normal offseason and report healthy for Spring Training in 2027.

It's an unfortunate ending to what became one of the most frustrating injury sagas of the Twins' season. Sands first landed on the injured list on May 2, retroactive to April 29, with what was initially diagnosed as a right forearm strain. At the time, Minnesota believed the injury would only sideline him briefly. Instead, it lingered for months.

He began a rehab assignment in early June but was shut down after inflammation returned. As the forearm strain improved, Sands still wasn't feeling right, prompting the Twins to continue searching for answers. He underwent multiple MRIs and a CT scan before doctors determined arthroscopic surgery to clean up his elbow offered the best path forward.

The 28-year-old restarted his rehab assignment earlier this month and finally appeared to be turning a corner. Over seven scoreless innings in the minors, Sands struck out eight hitters and earned another call back to the major league bullpen.

Unfortunately, his return lasted just one appearance. Facing the Athletics over the weekend, Sands recorded only one out while allowing five earned runs. He finished with a -0.14 Win Probability Added (WPA), and although Minnesota held on for the victory, it was immediately apparent that something wasn't right. The Twins placed him back on the injured list shortly afterward, and the decision to proceed with surgery followed.

It marks a disappointing interruption for a reliever who had quietly become a valuable piece of Minnesota's bullpen. Since making his major league debut in 2022, Sands has logged 207 1/3 innings with a respectable 4.21 ERA while consistently limiting free passes with a better-than-average 6.9% walk rate. 

His breakout came in 2024 when he struck out 29.1% of opposing hitters, though that figure dipped to 21.5% beginning in 2025 as he transitioned into more of a contact-management role.

Before the injury, Sands owned a 4.63 ERA across 12 appearances this season, but the numbers hardly tell the story of a year defined by rehab assignments, shutdowns, and unanswered questions.

The good news for both Sands and the Twins is that the organization believes the surgery addresses the underlying issue that repeatedly derailed his comeback attempts. With the procedure coming now, the expectation is that he'll still have something close to a normal offseason rather than facing a prolonged rehabilitation into next year.

For a bullpen that has already endured its share of injuries and turnover, losing Sands for the remainder of the season is another difficult blow. But after months of uncertainty, both player and club finally have a clear path forward. The focus now shifts from returning in 2026 to making sure Sands is fully healthy when pitchers and catchers report next February.

 

 

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[jmlease1]

A real shame. I thought Sands was a good fit to close games or serve as a set-up man and losing him made a thin bullpen quite a bit weaker. Hope he recovers fully and can get his career back on track.

The "rest & rehab" methodology hasn't panned out very well, and while I can certainly understand the desire to avoid surgery (even taking the competitive aspect out, it's almost always better to avoid cutting cut if you can) there may need to be some re-evaluation if surgery keeps ending up as the eventual answer all along.