Shane Bieber crossed a 75-pitch threshold in his fifth rehab appearance with Buffalo, but five earned runs and 11 base runners over five-plus innings left his path back to Toronto looking anything but smooth.
Shane Bieber walked into his fifth rehab start knowing he’d have to earn the next step back toward the Blue Jays. In the end, he did cross a key benchmark — then immediately made the outing feel uneasy.
On Wednesday, the Toronto right-hander threw his third rehab start for the Buffalo Bisons, reaching the pre-established 75-pitch threshold. He finished with 80 pitches, but allowed five earned runs and 11 base runners over five-plus innings against the Charlotte Knights.
The 2020 Cy Young award winner’s fastball sat at 91.8 miles per hour and topped out at 93 miles per hour. He produced six strikeouts on 33 swings, yet the traffic on the bases never fully went away.
Bieber’s problems started early. He walked the first batter he faced. then allowed a hard-hit drive to deep centre that Jonatan Clase caught near the wall. He began the second inning with another walk, and this time the damage piled up. Consecutive Knights’ singles scored the first run of the game. Then Andy Weber pulled a first-pitch cutter for a home run just inside the right-field foul pole to make it 4-0 Charlotte.
Toronto’s rehab assignment didn’t stay ugly forever, though. In the fourth inning. after the Knights loaded the bases with two outs. Bieber got out of the jam by striking out leadoff hitter Rikuu Nishida on a foul tip. He also induced three double plays during the outing. helping him strand multiple runners even as the early runs had already been surrendered.
The end came in the sixth. Bieber was taken out after allowing a leadoff home run to Ryan Galanie to start the inning.
Bieber has not appeared for the Blue Jays this season yet. He entered the year dealing with forearm fatigue and was placed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation. Toronto acquired him at last season’s trade deadline after he completed his recovered from Tommy John surgery. In 40.1 innings across seven regular-season starts for the Blue Jays, he struck out 37 and posted a 3.57 ERA.
Now, the next stage is still tied to how his workload feels after this start. The 31-year-old is expected to meet up with the Blue Jays during their six-game road trip to throw his side session. according to Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling. Next steps will be decided after that — with Wednesday’s 80-pitch outing serving as the latest reminder that the road back isn’t linear.
Shane Bieber Toronto Blue Jays Buffalo Bisons Charlotte Knights rehab start forearm fatigue right elbow inflammation Tommy John surgery 2020 Cy Young Arden Zwelling