Blue Jays’ Shane Bieber set to miss remainder of regular season, could return for playoffs
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Sep 19, 2026, 07:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 18, 2026, 18:55 EDT
The Toronto Blue Jays are going to need to reach the postseason if Shane Bieber is going to pitch again this season.
On Friday, before the series opener against the Texas Rangers, manager John Schneider stated that Bieber will throw a side session today in Texas and that a return during the regular season is off the table.
With only eight games left in the regular season, Bieber is set to be building up for the opportunity to help the Blue Jays if they find themselves in the playoffs.
Bieber missed the first 78 games of the season as he dealt with right elbow inflammation before being activated off the 60-day injured list for his first start on June 23. Through 11 starts this season, Bieber went 5-2 with a 4.37 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. The right-hander struck out 44 batters across 55.2 innings pitched and was hit at a .253 clip.
Set to be a free agent at season’s end after opting into a $16 million player option for the 2026 campaign, Bieber felt like a likely trade candidate as the Blue Jays’ season appeared to be falling off the rails heading into the trade deadline. In Bieber’s last start before the deadline, he imploded, failing to make it out of the first inning, and was ultimately kept on the roster as the Blue Jays moved on from other pending free agents.
The decision to hold onto Bieber worked, as in the four starts that followed, Bieber went 3-0 with a 2.59 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. The 31-year-old held opponents to a .232 average and struck out 22 batters across 24.1 innings during that span, as he continued to further remove himself from the injury that cost him almost half of the 2026 season.
Unfortunately for Bieber and the Blue Jays, following his most recent outing against the Tampa Bay Rays on August 20, in which he turned in a pitching line of 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, he was placed on the 15-day IL with right teres major inflammation.
This ailment has kept Bieber sidelined as he has slowly progressed to throwing and will put an end to his season unless the Blue Jays can play their way into October for the second straight campaign.
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