Robby Snelling to undergo Tommy John surgery, done for 2026

MIAMI — Prior to Thursday night’s game against Atlanta, the Miami Marlins announced that No. 2 prospect Robby Snelling will undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his rookie campaign after just one start. The procedure will be performed by Dr. Keith Meister on Friday—he has handled several prominent Marlins elbow surgeries, including those for Sandy Alcantara, Eury Pérez, Ronny Henriquez, and most recently, Adam Mazur.

Snelling made his major league debut on May 8, allowing three runs on five hits against the Washington Nationals. He struck out two and walked four over five innings. Following a bullpen session a few days later, Snelling complained of elbow discomfort, prompting Miami to shut him down and place him on the 15-day injured list.

Snelling was acquired at the 2024 trade deadline, along with the aforementioned Mazur, Graham Pauley, and Jay Beshears, in exchange for pitchers Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing.

After an uneven 2024 season, the left-hander broke out in 2025, earning a promotion to Triple-A Jacksonville. Between the two levels, Snelling posted a 2.51 ERA with 166 strikeouts across 136 innings. Before getting called up to the big leagues, Snelling was dominating Triple-A once again this season, posting a minuscule 1.86 ERA.

The rehab process from Tommy John takes a minimum of 12 months for pitchers to complete, though starters like Snelling need additional time on the back end to build up their pitch count. Using one of his teammates as a reference point, Eury Pérez returned to a major league mound last June, which was 14 months after his procedure.

The Marlins transferred Snelling to the 60-day injured list to make room for new trade acquisition Rece Hinds.

When Snelling went out, Braxton Garrett took over his Marlins rotation spot, but Garrett has since been optioned back to Jacksonville after consecutive poor outings combined (4.1 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 8 BB and 5 K). There's been no confirmation yet regarding who will start for Miami on Sunday when that spot is due up next.