Blue Jays take calculated risk in deadline acquisition of Shane Bieber

Globe and Mail

20 hours ago

Step aside, Justin. There is another Bieber coming to Toronto.
The Blue Jays on Friday acquired former Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber from the Guardians before the 6 p.m. ET trade deadline. In exchange they sent pitcher Khal Stephen, their No. 5-ranked prospect, to Cleveland.
The move to obtain Bieber is a calculated risk. He has not pitched in the major leagues since April, 2024, when he underwent Tommy John surgery.
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Bieber has made four rehab starts in the minor leagues and if he returns to anywhere near previous form, he could be a steal. The right-hander spent his entire career in Cleveland and had a 62-32 record before injury.
In his last two starts in the Arizona Complex League he threw 94 miles per hour and pitched 4.1 shutout innings and struck out 10 batters.
'He looked like Shane Bieber,' Toronto general manager Ross Atkins said. 'That's what our scout that was there told us.'
Besides winning the Cy Young Award unanimously in 2020, that year he also became the ninth pitching triple crown winner since 1913 when he led the majors in wins, earned run average and strikeouts.
It is unknown how close he is to being ready to pitch for Toronto.
'We will be focused on getting him here when it's best for him,' Atkins said. 'The risk is in some ways the exciting aspect in terms of our upside.'
In addition, the Blue Jays acquired reliever Louis Varland and infielder Ty France from the Minnesota Twins for outfielder Alan Roden and pitching prospect Kendry Rojas. A former starter, the right-handed Varland is 3-3 in 51 games with a 2.02 ERA this season.
France, 31, has played more than 800 games in the big leagues with 80 homers and 356 runs batted in.
Earlier in the afternoon the club acquired minor-league catcher Brandon Valenzuela from the San Diego Padres for infielder Will Wagner.
'We are fired up to be in a position where we are acquiring talent,' Atkins said. 'We were very aggressive at the deadline and made our team better.
'We accomplished our goals and I feel good about that.'
At 64-46, Toronto is currently tied with the Detroit Tigers for the third-best record in baseball. Milwaukee is first at 64-44, followed by the Chicago Cubs (63-45). The Blue Jays hold a four-game lead over the New York Yankees in the American League East Division as they head into a weekend series at Rogers Centre against the Kansas City Royals.
The biggest deals around the deadline included San Diego picking up relief pitcher Mason Miller and starting pitcher JP Sears from Oakland for minor-league shortstop Leo De Vries, the No. 3 prospect in baseball; infielder Carlos Correa returning to Houston in a deal with Minnesota for a minor leaguer and cash; Seattle picking up slugging third baseman Eugenio Suarez from Arizona; and Philadelphia landing premier closer Jhoan Duran from the Twins for catcher Eduardo Tait and pitcher Mick Abel.
The talk of the town in Toronto on Friday was that Bieber – Shane, that is – was headed for the city. He is expected to arrive in Toronto on Saturday.
Bieber has a player option for US$16-million next year.
'I feel like my stuff is in a really good spot,' he said after his last rehab assignment. 'To be frank, it has been in a great spot since I started throwing. I am very confident with the action of my pitches.
'For me, it is really about building arm strength. I look forward to continuing [to] progress. I am happy with it.'
Nobody seemed happier on Friday than Atkins.
'He was a fit from a teammate perspective and character,' the general manager said. 'The guy has been elite and has performed very well on big stages. He was the pitcher in baseball at one point.
'It will be hard for him to surpass his previous ceiling when you look at all the things he has accomplished. For him to get back to where he was would be exciting.'