Ryan Jeffers broke his hamate bone swinging and then watched two pitches go by before gesturing to the dugout. It hurt “really bad,” Jeffers said. But as a catcher, he’s used to pain. What he’s not used to is taking himself out of a game early.

“It’s the position. It’s who we are,” Jeffers said. “But yeah, there was no way I was swinging the bat that AB.”

Jeffers had a hunch it was the hamate bone, and further imaging on Tuesday morning confirmed. Surgery was set for Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles with Dr. Steven Shin.

But despite the injury coming in the midst of a hot start to the season, the catcher remained relatively optimistic even in the face of an extended absence.

General manager Jeremy Zoll said he expected the timeline to return would be around six to eight weeks, though Jeffers himself noted that some other players have come back as quickly as four weeks.

“It’s an unfortunate time, but you know if you’re going to have an injury, having the most predictable, such a straightforward time line, such a straightforward surgery, it’s completely out of my control,” Jeffers said. “It doesn’t matter how much I prepared my body to be healthy and get ready for the season. This was something that was just going to happen. I don’t think it puts a damper on anything I was doing.”

What he was doing was hitting like one of the best catchers in the game.

Jeffers was hitting .295/.408/.541 with a .949 OPS at the time of his injury, and that kind of production isn’t going to be easy to replace in the lineup. After the surgery, Jeffers expects to be in a cast for about a week, after which he can start getting his hand moving again.

Breaking the hamate, a small bone near the bottom of the hand, is not an uncommon injury for hitters. Just this year, New York Mets star Francisco Lindor, Arizona standout Corbin Carroll and Baltimore second baseman Jackson Holliday, a former No. 1 overall pick, have all done the same.

Both Carroll and Lindor had surgery in February and returned to spring training games about a month later. Holliday’s return took longer — he had surgery in February and just returned days ago, dealing with some discomfort as he worked his way through his rehab assignment.

“The outcomes are pretty predictable,” Jeffers said. “If I’m going to get hurt with anything, I’d rather it be something that it’s a one-time thing, it doesn’t go on the injury report going forward. We kind of move on. I come back with over half the season left to go.”

Briefly

The Twins have granted veteran relievers John Brebbia and Matt Bowman their release after both players triggered their contractual opt-outs. Bowman had a 1.69 earned-run average across 21 1/3 innings for the Saints this season. Brebbia had a 6.20 ERA in 20 1/3 innings at Triple-A. … The Twins have not announced their full rotations for their upcoming series against the Boston Red Sox, but they did announce that Connor Prielipp will start the first game. … Kody Clemens got his first start of the season in right field on Wednesday. … Byron Buxton, who missed five days with hip flexor soreness, spent his second straight day at designated hitter.