Blue Jays Suddenly Have Rotation Hope Thanks to Shane Bieber Progress
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A bumpy season filled with some bad injury luck continued on Monday, as the Vladimir Guerrero Jr.-less Toronto Blue Jays fell 8-2 in their series opener against the Miami Marlins after announcing that Dylan Cease was being placed on the 15-day injured list with a mild left hamstring strain.
The day, however, was not without its positives. Nathan Lukes returned from the injured list after suffering his own left hamstring strain and had a three-hit day, although he probably could have done without being plunked in the helmet by an Andrew Nardi sinker in the seventh inning.
Bieber On the Road to Recovery
And on the Blue Jays' beleaguered starting pitching front, there was some good news happening far away from the cozy confines of Rogers Centre. Shane Bieber made his return to the mound in the Florida Complex League, beginning a rehab assignment with the FCL Blue Jays by surrendering three hits and recording three strikeouts over two scoreless innings.
Bieber has not pitched this season on account of lingering elbow issues after making a triumphant return from Tommy John surgery with Toronto last season following a trade deadline acquisition. After surprisingly exercising his $16 million player option to stick with the Blue Jays and defer free agency, the 30-year-old was expected to be a key part of a loaded rotation.
Upon returning from Tommy John surgery last August, Bieber experienced the type of uneven, inconsistent performance you might expect from someone coming back from what was ultimately a 16-month layoff.
He went 4-2 with a 3.57 ERA and 37 strikeouts over seven regular-season starts before going 2-1 with a 3.86 ERA across four starts and five appearances in the postseason, including 5.1 strong innings in Game 4 of the World Series.
Bieber's efforts were enough to earn the trust of manager John Schneider, pitching coach Pete Walker and the coaching staff, and to spark excitement over what he might be able to do over a full, healthy season.
That full, healthy season has not yet come to fruition, although there is hope that Monday's rehab outing represents a significant step towards pitching for Toronto.
Despite the increased optimism, there remains no specific target date for Bieber's return. He is expected to pitch at Single-A Dunedin on May 31, with a reported goal of three innings.
Couple that with Max Scherzer beginning to face live batters, and there are some modestly encouraging signs coming from the Blue Jays' starting rotation mash unit (even if they'll still need to figure out how to backfill Cease's slot in the meantime).
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Ben Fisher is a long-time sportswriter and baseball lover, dating back to 2008, when he was a member of the media relations team for the Toronto Blue Jays. He has covered a wide range of sports for a seemingly endless array of publications, including The Canadian Press, Fansided and The Hockey Writers. When he isn't writing about sports, he can be found coaching his equally baseball-obsessed sons' Little League teams.