Jose Bautista to Have Season-Ending Surgery

Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Jose Bautista will undergo season-ending surgery on his left wrist next week, reports Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com:

Jose Bautista's 2012 campaign has officially come to an end after it was revealed on Tuesday afternoon that he will undergo season-ending surgery on his left wrist.

Bautista originally suffered the injury during a swing in New York on July 16.

The 31-year-old returned to the Blue Jays line-up briefly last week, but re-aggravated the injury in the third inning of Saturday's game and was removed. Bautista was examined by hand specialist Dr. Thomas Graham in Cleveland on Monday, who recommended surgery as the best course of action.

The procedure, which will stabilize a tendon sheath in the slugger's left wrist, is expected to have a three to fourth month recovery time. Bautista said he spoke with Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Sam Fuld, who experienced the same injury last season, and came to the conclusion that immediate surgery was the best course of action:

"[Fuld] attempted a longer resting period and immobilization, and that didn't really work out for him," Bautista said. "I'm going to bypass that and go straight for the surgery...

"I'll be ready with plenty of time to go before Spring Training starts. It's the right time."

The reigning home run champ hit .241/.358/.527 with twenty-seven home runs in ninety-two games on the season.