TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays' latest injury won't necessarily end Shane Bieber's season, but it will test the organization's pitching depth at a time that pressure is already building.
Within a weak American League, there's still opportunity for the Blue Jays, who recalled right-hander Chad Dallas to take Bieber's place on the active roster Tuesday. But without the former Cy Young winner, it'll be that much harder for the Blue Jays to make the push they need.
Bieber had been slated to start against the Royals Wednesday, but he felt some discomfort while throwing a bullpen session in New York Sunday. An MRI later revealed inflammation in the teres major, the muscle that connects the shoulder blade to the upper arm.
According to manager John Schneider, the Blue Jays are hopeful this injury doesn’t have to end Bieber’s season.
“It sucks for him (and) sucks for us,” Schneider said. “He'll be down from throwing for a couple weeks probably and go from there.”
With only five weeks remaining in the regular season, the Blue Jays have limited time to get Bieber back to full strength. But like Trey Yesavage, who has resumed throwing off flat ground since undergoing a meniscus clean-up, Bieber will work in the hopes of returning.
Starting pitchers nearly always require multiple weeks to build back up to full strength, so even the most optimistic scenario would have Bieber returning towards the very end of the season or perhaps in the post-season.
Through 11 starts, the 31-year-old has a 4.53 ERA with 44 strikeouts compared to 24 walks in 55.2 innings. He started the season on the injured list with right elbow inflammation, missing 78 games before making his season debut June 23.
A free agent after the season, Bieber could once again be a fit for the Blue Jays on the open market and he's been clear about how much he enjoys pitching in Toronto. First things first, though: the Blue Jays are aiming for a 2026 return.
“We don't have a timeframe yet, but we’re definitely hopeful he'll be back,” Schneider said.
As for Wednesday, the Blue Jays will deploy a bullpen game of some kind, with Simeon Woods Richardson likely to pitch for multiple innings. Spencer Arrighetti will then start Thursday in the series finale when he'll likely be capped around 75 pitches following a 61-pitch outing in New York last week.
Meanwhile, Jameson Taillon will pitch at triple-A Friday, and if all goes well in that rehab outing, the right-hander could join the Blue Jays during their upcoming road series in Cleveland next week. He’s tentatively slated to throw approximately 50 pitches Friday and go from there.
The injury to Bieber means the Blue Jays are navigating uncertainty in two of their five rotation spots while juggling a beleaguered bullpen. Given the injuries to Bieber, Yesavage, Cody Ponce, Jose Berrios and others, the Blue Jays need remaining starters like Dylan Cease, Jose Soriano and Max Scherzer to continue providing steady innings down the stretch.
With 30 games remaining on the schedule, the Blue Jays are 2.0 games behind the final American League wild-card spot entering play Tuesday. It’s a deficit that can be overcome with a strong finish, but the Blue Jays will need to go at least 17-13 to finish the season with a .500 record.
Surpassing .500 with so many pitching injuries will likely require some unexpected contributors to step up over the course of the season’s final month.
4:20
