Shane Bieber will be behind the other Toronto Blue Jays‘ starters when spring training begins.
The right-hander is dealing with arm fatigue and will ramp up slower, manager John Schneider announced Tuesday. Surgery is not required, and Bieber is expected to pitch early this season.
“He’s here, he’s feeling good, he’s playing catch up to 90 feet,” Schneider said. “We’ll see. I think we’re kind of being cautious by saying not at the beginning of the year. (We’re going to) work through it with Shane and kind of do week-to-week with him and see how he’s going.”
Bieber underwent an MRI during the off-season that showed “nothing was wrong, just forearm fatigue,” Schneider said, contributing to the team’s decision to slow up his ramp-up for 2026.
Bieber returned from Tommy John surgery last August and helped the Blue Jays reach the World Series. He then picked up his player option to return to the rotation, which was further reinforced by the additions of Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce this off-season.
Toronto landed Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians at the 2025 trade deadline in exchange for pitching prospect Khal Stephen.
Bieber went on to finish his rehab with the Blue Jays before making his organizational debut on Aug. 22. The 30-year-old right-hander ended up making seven regular-season starts for Toronto, throwing 40.1 innings while striking out 37 and posting a 3.57 ERA.
In the post-season, Bieber made starts in all three rounds and appeared out of the bullpen in Game 7 of the World Series. He had a 3.86 playoff ERA and struck out 18 batters in 18.2 innings of work.
“It’s just a high-level pitcher coming off Tommy John and pitching longer than he expected and in some really high-stress innings,” Schneider said of the Blue Jays taking it slow with Bieber.
With Bieber’s delay, Schneider said Toronto is planning on stretching out Eric Lauer as a starter to join a group of rotation options that also includes Kevin Gausman, Trey Yesavage and Jose Berrios.
Schneider also provided an update on reliever Yimi García, who was limited to just 21 innings in 2025 due to injury.
“He’s throwing. He’s feeling better. We’ll kind of see how his game ramps up,” Schneider said. “The hope is that he’ll be ready Opening Day… But he’s been throwing for numerous weeks now. We’re going to be careful with him, given his age and track record.”
