MIAMI (AP) — Shane Bieber struck out nine over six dominant innings of one-run ball in his debut with the Blue Jays on Friday night, helping Toronto beat the Miami Marlins 5-2 after 16 months away from the mound.
“Today, it was all gratitude for what’s been a long road for my family and my support team that keep me going every day,” Bieber said. “Just awesome to share this moment with them.”
It was Bieber’s first major league appearance since April 2, 2024, when he experienced elbow discomfort and subsequently underwent Tommy John surgery.
The right-hander allowed two hits and hit a batter in his 87-pitch outing. He retired 12 straight after allowing Javier Sanoja’s solo homer in the second inning.
“For me, I think since pitch one it was back to doing what I love to do,” Bieber said. “Just fell right into rhythm and was happy how all that went. Kind of happy to hit the ground running and continue to put one foot in front of the other.”
Bieber threw 55 pitches for strikes. His pitch breakdown relied heavily on a mixture of 26 four-seam fastballs and 25 sliders that helped induce 15 swings and misses.
“Falling in a rhythm is a big part of pitching,” Bieber said. “I was able to do that very early on with my fastball and then second time through the order the spin picked up. Overall, very happy with how tonight went.”
Bieber benefited from early run support on Daulton Varsho’s RBI double and Ty France’s two-run single in the first.
“Getting those three runs was nice to focus on throwing strikes, getting ahead and eating up innings to try go deep in the ball game,” Bieber said.
Before the game, Toronto manager John Schneider indicated that Bieber was scheduled to throw approximately 100 pitches for his return but was content with the final total.
“I think that’s a good outing for him to build off,” Schneider said. “I’m happy for Shane. It’s a long road to get back here.”
The Blue Jays acquired the 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner from the Cleveland Guardians on July 31. Bieber had done four rehab outings with the Guardians before the trade and three since joining the Blue Jays.
“I’m done with my rehab and I’m here to compete and to win,” Bieber said.
The 30-year-old Bieber spent his first seven seasons with Cleveland. In the 60-game 2020 season, he finished 8-1 with a league low 1.63 ERA and led the AL in strikeouts with 122.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
The Associated Press
