The Toronto Blue Jays announced right-hander Shane Bieber has been moved from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL, a discouraging development that pushes back the veteran’s timeline for a return from a forearm injury.
Injuries continue to dominate the Blue Jays news cycle, particularly on the pitching side. Jose Berrios, Trey Yesavage, and Bowden Francis joined Bieber on the injured list to begin the 2026 season. Cody Ponce went down just one start into the year with a torn ACL. Ponce and Francis are done for the season.
Bieber received the vague diagnosis of “forearm fatigue” during the spring. He did not appear in any MLB Spring Training games. The veteran right-hander has thrown off a mound, with the next step likely being a rehab assignment. The move from the 15-day to the 60-day IL means Bieber can’t return until the end of May at the earliest. The transaction opens up a 40-man roster spot for Lenyn Sosa, who was acquired from the Chicago White Sox for Jordan Rich.
Toronto Blue Jays News Update: Shane Bieber Moved to 60-Day IL
The Blue Jays acquired Bieber at the 2025 trade deadline in a deal with the Cleveland Guardians. The righty was injured at the time. Once he had recovered from surgery to repair his UCL, Bieber entered the Toronto rotation. He delivered a solid 3.57 ERA over seven starts. The veteran allowed two earned runs or fewer in three appearances to close the regular season.
Bieber was a valuable member of the Blue Jays’ pitching staff during the club’s march through the 2025 playoffs. He posted a quality start in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the Seattle Mariners to earn the victory. Bieber held Seattle’s offense in check during the decisive Game 7 of that series. The righty continued to pitch well in the Fall Classic. Bieber ceded just a run over 5.1 innings in Game 4 of the World Series, earning another win. He wrapped up the postseason with a 3.86 ERA and nearly a strikeout per inning across five appearances.
Blue Jays’ Rotation Off to Shaky Start
Toronto has scuffled to a 6-9 start. The 2025 AL pennant winners sit at 4th in the AL East. The Blue Jays dropped two straight to the Minnesota Twins over the weekend. The club has now lost four series in a row, including to bottom dwellers, the Colorado Rockies and the Chicago White Sox.
Pitching looked like a strength heading into the year. Instead, it’s been the team’s biggest weakness this season. The Blue Jays’ rotation has the third-worst ERA in the league at 5.20. Only the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros have been worse so far. Toronto starters have earned just two wins all season, which ranks dead last in the league. Surprisingly, Eric Lauer and Max Scherzer have recorded the unit’s two victories. Both pitchers have ERAs over 7.00.
Kevin Gausman has been the lone bright spot on the mound. The veteran righty delivered a pair of double-digit strikeout efforts in his first two outings of the season. He held the Dodgers to three earned runs over 5.1 frames last time out in a World Series rematch. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and three relievers limited the Blue Jays’ offense to one run, handing Gausman his first loss of the year.
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