Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Shane Bieber reacted following his disastrous start against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.
With the MLB trade deadline coming up on August 3, the Blue Jays are likely to deal Bieber, an impending free agent, since Toronto is unlikely to make the playoffs and contenders are always looking for pitching at the deadline.
Bieber has been looking sharp in his recent starts, increasing his trade value ahead of the deadline. But on Tuesday against the Nationals, Bieber’s trade value tanked as he had arguably the worst start of his entire MLB career.
In just 0.2 IP, Bieber allowed 1 hit but also 6 walks and 4 ER while throwing 42 pitches. With Bieber not being able to control the strike zone, Blue Jays manager John Schneider was forced to remove him from the game in the very first inning.
The Blue Jays ultimately lost the game 8-6 and dropped to 49-59 on the season. To make matters worse, first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. suffered a right hamstring injury and was removed from the game.
Shane Bieber Reacts After Awful Start
Speaking to reporters following the Blue Jays’ loss to Washington, Bieber admitted that he had a problem gripping the baseball, which is what led to the six walks. But ultimately, he knows that he has to be better, and he’s not making any excuses for what was a very poor performance from the former AL Cy Young Award winner.
“A frustrated Shane Bieber said he had a tough time gripping the ball tonite but that: ‘You have to find a way to get through it, right? I wasn’t able to do that tonight. So ultimately, followed up what was maybe my best start as a Blue Jay, with what was definitely my worst,’” Bieber said (via Hazel Mae).
Who Wants Shane Bieber?
Although Bieber’s start on Tuesday against Washington was absolutely atrocious, he was looking better as of late, so the Blue Jays will likely be able to find a suitor for him at the trade deadline, regardless of how bad this performance against Washington was.
That being said, Toronto was likely hoping that Bieber would have had a better start against the Nationals, which would have increased his trade value heading into the August 3 deadline. Instead, Bieber’s trade value tanked with the disastrous start.
Still, teams are always looking for pitching ahead of the playoffs, and with Bieber having an expiring contract, the Blue Jays are going to trade him as they don’t have any shot of making the playoffs at this point.
The Blue Jays likely won’t get much in return for Bieber, but they can probably still get one or two lottery ticket prospects for him in a trade. If the Blue Jays pay off the remainder of his salary for this coming season, they can probably get a better prospect package back in return.
Either way, Bieber’s start against Washington is likely the last one that he will ever have in a Blue Jays uniform, with the trade deadline just a few days away.
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