The Marlins are going to be without Max Meyer’s arm for a while longer, and maybe longer than that.
Miami said the right-hander won’t throw for two weeks after a neck strain landed him on the injured list Monday, according to Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. The team had been light on specifics when the move was first announced, but the latest update makes the situation look more serious for a club that is sliding fast in the NL Wild Card race.
Meyer’s last outing came right after the All-Star break, when he worked through three innings against the Brewers. He allowed two earned runs on three hits and three walks, and he needed 74 pitches to get through those three frames.
That workload didn’t initially point to an injury, especially since Miami had already pushed back his final start before the break to give him extra rest. The neck discomfort apparently showed up in his previous appearance on July 7.
What happens next is still up in the air. It’s not clear whether Meyer will need a rehab assignment before he can rejoin the big-league club, and after a two-week shutdown he’ll still need time to build back up. That means the injury could end up costing him most of August.
The timing is especially frustrating because Meyer was right near a career-high in innings for a professional season. He logged 115 innings between Triple-A and the majors in 2024, and he’s already up to 111 this year.
The 27-year-old’s career has been interrupted by injuries before. He missed all of 2023 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, and a hip injury ended his 2025 campaign in early June. Still, he came into this season with 25 big-league starts across parts of three seasons, and he’s already made 20 starts in 2026.
This year had been a real breakthrough. Meyer has a 2.68 ERA and a career-best 26.2% strikeout rate, with some help from a .262 batting average on balls in play. Even if you look at his 3.85 xERA or 3.80 SIERA, the performance still marks a clear step forward from what he’d done before.
A big reason for that jump has been the breaking stuff. Meyer has leaned heavily on his sweeper and slider, using the two pitches a combined 56% of the time.
Both have whiff rates above 35% and opponents are hitting under .200 against each. He ranks in the 99th percentile in breaking ball Run Value, with the 5th-best sweeper and 12th-best slider among qualified pitchers by Run Value.
That pair has helped cover for a fastball that has allowed a .494 SLG and a 92.5 average exit velocity.
For Miami, the loss hits a pitching staff that was already stretched thin. The current rotation picture now runs through Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, and Janson Junk, followed by bullpen games led by Tyler Phillips and Ryan Gusto.
The Marlins did not call up Braxton Garrett to fill Meyer’s spot. Garrett instead started at Triple-A yesterday and gave up seven earned runs in 2 2/3 innings.
The other 40-man option is Bradley Blalock, who has a 6.14 ERA with Jacksonville, while top prospect Karson Milbrandt has also scuffled badly lately, posting a 14.09 ERA and a 2.87 WHIP in three July appearances.
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