Blue Jays shut down Pearce for season with back injury

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Steve Pearce will miss the remainder of the season because of lower back stiffness, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.

"I’ve just got to get this thing calmed down," Pearce said. "I’ve been dealing with it for a while and it flared up."

The 34-year-old will receive epidural injections in Florida on Monday to help him address the pain before resting for the remainder of the season.

"It’s a pretty easy procedure, but the hardest thing is you’ve got to rest," he explained. "You’ve got to let this thing heal and start with general exercises - nothing hard out of the gate. Even if you feel like you can, just stay simple for a while."

Pearce hasn't appeared in a game since Sept. 8.

During his first season with the Blue Jays, the veteran fashioned a .252/.319/.438 slash line with 13 home runs and 37 RBIs across 348 plate appearances.