<p>The <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/">Toronto Blue Jays</a> are heading to Yankee Stadium, with the squad looking to clinch the ALDS after taking the first two games on home soil. Kevin Gausman and Trey Yesavage did their part on the mound, and the Jays&#8217; bats torched the Yankees&#8217; pitching staff, putting up 23 runs to take a commanding series lead as it heads back south of the border.</p>
<p></p>
<p>With Toronto now on the road, manager John Schneider is turning to veteran right-hander Shane Bieber to get the job done in the Bronx. Joining the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, Bieber made seven starts for his new club down the stretch, authoring a 3.57 ERA and a 4.47 FIP across 40 1/3 innings. He struck out 37 batters to the tune of an 8.3 K/9 and commanded the strike zone, pitching to a 1.6 BB/9 and a 1.017 WHIP during that time.</p>
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<p>Given his background and how he finished the year, Bieber was always going to be one arm that Schneider leaned on in October. When healthy, the California product dominates on the mound, owning a career 3.24 ERA through 143 outings. However, has this success translated to the postseason?</p>
<p>Before joining the Jays, Bieber had spent his entire career in Cleveland, dating back to his 2018 big league debut in the AL Central. Injuries have seen him miss considerable time during the previous eight-year stint, and although Cleveland has made the postseason four times since his debut (2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024), he has only appeared in the 2020 and 2022 series.</p>
<h2><strong>2020 &#8211; Cleveland vs. New York Yankees &#8211; AL Wild Card</strong></h2>
<p>During the COVID-19 pandemic, the league was shortened to just 60 games, and it was decided that there would be a <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/baseball-postseason-format-changes">new playoff format</a> that year to accommodate the schedule change. The Guardians finished second in the AL Central and wound up facing the <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-revenge-tour-has-begun">New York Yankees</a> in a three-game AL Wild Card matchup.</p>
<p>Bieber, who ended up winning the AL Cy Young Award that campaign, was tasked with starting the first game of the series, going opposite Gerrit Cole, and the right-hander struggled in his first postseason matchup. He allowed nine hits and seven earned runs across 4 2/3 innings, walking two batters while striking out seven. Aaron Judge hit a two-run home run in the first inning to put the Yankees on the board early, and he surrendered two more homers before being lifted during the fifth inning. Cleveland would go on to lose the next game and was bounced from the postseason.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">&quot;If Shane Bieber is that guy for the next four weeks, he&#39;s number one [in a Postseason series].&quot;<a href="https://twitter.com/Plesac19?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Plesac19</a> was blown away by Shane Bieber&#39;s debut for the Jays! <a href="https://t.co/SAQUR96QIC">pic.twitter.com/SAQUR96QIC</a></p>
<p>&mdash; MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1960112955326079453?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<h2>2022 &#8211; Cleveland vs. Tampa Bay Rays &#8211; AL Wild Card</h2>
<p>This was the first season of the expanded Wild Card format, the one that Major League Baseball currently uses today. With this in mind, the Guardians, who finished first in the AL Central but third overall in terms of standings amongst division leaders, ended up facing the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL Wild Card matchup, while the Jays faced the Seattle Mariners.</p>
<p>Looking for redemption, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/shane-biebers-strong-return-big-leagues-boosts-blue-jays-postseason-push">Bieber</a> once again got the nod to start Game One of the Wild Card, and the right-hander did not disappoint.</p>
<p>Across 7 2/3 innings of work, Bieber allowed just three hits and one walk to the tune of one earned run, setting Cleveland up in a good spot for the eventual win. He struck out eight Rays on the day and outdueled Shane McClanahan on the bump, who went seven innings, allowing two earned runs. Bieber didn&#8217;t allow a hit until the top of the fifth inning, a groundball single to Harold Ramirez through the left side, and the veteran arm was on cruise control for much of the contest. Cleveland would win this game and Game Two to advance to the ALCS.</p>
<h2>2022 &#8211; Cleveland vs. New York Yankees &#8211; ALDS</h2>
<p>Now comes the real redemption opportunity &#8211; facing the Yankees once again in the postseason. His first foray in 2020 didn&#8217;t go his way, but Bieber was looking to bounce back and help his team win, doing so in a Friday afternoon contest at Yankee Stadium.</p>
<p>While Bieber did not earn the win in the eventual extra innings affair, he set the Guardians up for success. He lasted 5 2/3 innings, allowing five hits, three walks, and two earned runs on the day while striking out seven. His only blemish came in the first inning, when he gave up a two-run homer to Giancarlo Stanton to give New York an early lead, but Bieber settled in shortly after. He found himself in a few jams due to the walks, but always found a way to escape the situation unscathed, such as striking Stanton out in the bottom of the third inning with runners in scoring position.</p>
<p>Cleveland would earn the win after scoring two runs on Jameson Taillon in the tenth inning, but would eventually drop the series, taking New York to a do-or-die Game #5 before bowing out.</p>
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Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Shane Bieber (57) throws a pitch against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot Park.

The <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/">Toronto Blue Jays</a> are heading to Yankee Stadium, with the squad looking to clinch the ALDS after taking the first two games on home soil. Kevin Gausman and Trey Yesavage did their part on the mound, and the Jays' bats torched the Yankees' pitching staff, putting up 23 runs to take a commanding series lead as it heads back south of the border.



With Toronto now on the road, manager John Schneider is turning to veteran right-hander Shane Bieber to get the job done in the Bronx. Joining the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, Bieber made seven starts for his new club down the stretch, authoring a 3.57 ERA and a 4.47 FIP across 40 1/3 innings. He struck out 37 batters to the tune of an 8.3 K/9 and commanded the strike zone, pitching to a 1.6 BB/9 and a 1.017 WHIP during that time.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="330" data-promotion-id="18983" data-context="“web-content-promocard&quot;"></div>
Given his background and how he finished the year, Bieber was always going to be one arm that Schneider leaned on in October. When healthy, the California product dominates on the mound, owning a career 3.24 ERA through 143 outings. However, has this success translated to the postseason?

Before joining the Jays, Bieber had spent his entire career in Cleveland, dating back to his 2018 big league debut in the AL Central. Injuries have seen him miss considerable time during the previous eight-year stint, and although Cleveland has made the postseason four times since his debut (2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024), he has only appeared in the 2020 and 2022 series.
<h2><strong>2020 - Cleveland vs. New York Yankees - AL Wild Card</strong></h2>
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the league was shortened to just 60 games, and it was decided that there would be a <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/baseball-postseason-format-changes">new playoff format</a> that year to accommodate the schedule change. The Guardians finished second in the AL Central and wound up facing the <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-revenge-tour-has-begun">New York Yankees</a> in a three-game AL Wild Card matchup.

Bieber, who ended up winning the AL Cy Young Award that campaign, was tasked with starting the first game of the series, going opposite Gerrit Cole, and the right-hander struggled in his first postseason matchup. He allowed nine hits and seven earned runs across 4 2/3 innings, walking two batters while striking out seven. Aaron Judge hit a two-run home run in the first inning to put the Yankees on the board early, and he surrendered two more homers before being lifted during the fifth inning. Cleveland would go on to lose the next game and was bounced from the postseason.

https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1960112955326079453
<h2>2022 - Cleveland vs. Tampa Bay Rays - AL Wild Card</h2>
This was the first season of the expanded Wild Card format, the one that Major League Baseball currently uses today. With this in mind, the Guardians, who finished first in the AL Central but third overall in terms of standings amongst division leaders, ended up facing the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL Wild Card matchup, while the Jays faced the Seattle Mariners.

Looking for redemption, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/shane-biebers-strong-return-big-leagues-boosts-blue-jays-postseason-push">Bieber</a> once again got the nod to start Game One of the Wild Card, and the right-hander did not disappoint.

Across 7 2/3 innings of work, Bieber allowed just three hits and one walk to the tune of one earned run, setting Cleveland up in a good spot for the eventual win. He struck out eight Rays on the day and outdueled Shane McClanahan on the bump, who went seven innings, allowing two earned runs. Bieber didn't allow a hit until the top of the fifth inning, a groundball single to Harold Ramirez through the left side, and the veteran arm was on cruise control for much of the contest. Cleveland would win this game and Game Two to advance to the ALCS.
<h2>2022 - Cleveland vs. New York Yankees - ALDS</h2>
Now comes the real redemption opportunity - facing the Yankees once again in the postseason. His first foray in 2020 didn't go his way, but Bieber was looking to bounce back and help his team win, doing so in a Friday afternoon contest at Yankee Stadium.

While Bieber did not earn the win in the eventual extra innings affair, he set the Guardians up for success. He lasted 5 2/3 innings, allowing five hits, three walks, and two earned runs on the day while striking out seven. His only blemish came in the first inning, when he gave up a two-run homer to Giancarlo Stanton to give New York an early lead, but Bieber settled in shortly after. He found himself in a few jams due to the walks, but always found a way to escape the situation unscathed, such as striking Stanton out in the bottom of the third inning with runners in scoring position.

Cleveland would earn the win after scoring two runs on Jameson Taillon in the tenth inning, but would eventually drop the series, taking New York to a do-or-die Game #5 before bowing out.

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