The Blue Jays’ rotation has plenty of talent on paper, but a slate of injuries have taken their toll through the first half of the season. Kevin Gausman is Toronto’s sole qualifying starter with 16 starts. Dylan Cease, Max Scherzer, and Trey Yesavage have all made trips to the injured list (two for Scherzer). Meanwhile, depth signing Patrick Corbin started off well but has given up 11 earned runs in his last 11 2/3 innings.
The Jays are currently limited to a four-man rotation of Gausman, Corbin, Cease, and Yesavage. They’ve relied on bullpen games for the fifth spot, with Braydon Fisher opening for bulk arm Simeon Woods Richardson on Wednesday. That won’t be the case the next time around, as Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet reports that righty Shane Bieber will be activated from the 60-day IL to start Monday’s game against the Astros.
Bieber has been on the IL since late March due to right elbow inflammation he experienced in spring training. He’s made five rehab appearances thus far and put up a 6.88 ERA in 17 innings. While those results aren’t inspiring, Bieber threw five innings in each of his last two starts and appears ready from a health standpoint. The Jays may simply desire a traditional five-man rotation with Bieber rather than continuing to rely on bullpen games.
That said, there’s still risk in relying on Bieber for the fifth spot. Owing to Tommy John surgery in April 2024, Bieber has only made nine regular season starts since the start of that season. Seven of those came with Toronto last year. Bieber last pitched a meaningful sample with the Guardians in 2023. In that season, he ran a 3.80 ERA over 21 starts along with a career-low 20.1% strikeout rate and diminished velocity.
To his credit, Bieber’s 92.6 MPH four-seamer in 2025 was back above his pre-Tommy John levels. He also posted a 3.57 ERA, 48.2% ground ball rate, and 4.4% walk rate with Toronto, giving some confidence that he could return to being an effective starter, if not the ace he was with Cleveland. The risk comes down to Bieber’s age (he turned 31 in May) and uncertainty over how he’ll perform coming off another months-long, elbow injury-related layoff.
Toronto recently designated Yariel Rodríguez and Connor Seabold for assignment and reinstated Lazaro Estrada from the 60-day IL. After those moves, their 40-man roster stands at 39. As such, Bieber would need a spot cleared on the active roster, but no corresponding 40-man transaction is needed. The Jays currently have a nine-man bullpen, so they will probably demote a reliever in order to accommodate Bieber’s return.
Photo courtesy of Kiyoshi Mio, Imagn Images
