A former Cy Young Award winner is back in the saddle again.
Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider announced on Monday that right-hander Shane Bieber will make both his franchise and season debut in the team’s Friday night road matchup against the Miami Marlins. It will be Bieber’s first MLB start since April 2, 2024, which is the last start he made prior to suffering a season-ending elbow injury and eventually undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Toronto acquired Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians in July for right-hander and 2024 second-round draft pick Khal Stephen. Bieber is in the first season of a two-year, $26 million deal, which includes a player option for the 2026 MLB season.
The now-30-year-old Bieber made his MLB debut in 2018 and emerged as a formidable force in 2019, tossing three complete games, posting a 3.28 ERA and 259 strikeouts and earning an All-Star nod in the latter season. The ensuing year (truncated 2020 season), Bieber won the American League Cy Young Award.
From 2019-23, Bieber recorded a combined 3.07 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. He joins a Toronto starting rotation that entered Aug. 19 with a collective 3.99 ERA, tied for 17th in MLB, and a 6.6 WAR, good for 18th.
The Blue Jays are 73-53 with a five-game lead over the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox for first place in the American League East and are a half-game behind the Detroit Tigers for the best record in the AL.
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