Blue Jays vs. Cubs postponed on Sunday (rain)

Bieber got off to a rough start in this one. After walking the second batter he faced on the night, the righty then gave up a two-run homer to Xander Bogaerts to immediately put his team down 2-0. He would settle in after that, scattering just four hits and one walk over his next 3 2/3 innings of work before being pulled with two outs in the fifth inning to give the Blue Jays the left-on-left matchup with Gavin Sheets coming to the plate. Despite the rough start, it was a relatively solid outing for Bieber, who needed a bounce-back after allowing seven earned runs in his previous start. Bieber is still rounding into form after missing nearly three months due to injury. He’s allowed two earned runs in two of his four starts this season and should be poised for a strong second half of the season.

Imanaga was locked in a pitcher’s duel with Hunter Greene, as both pitchers tossed four scoreless innings to begin the game. Imanaga was the first to fold on the night when he allowed a solo homer to Elly De La Cruz in the fifth inning to give the Reds a 1-0 lead. It would be the only run Imanaga would allow on the night, as the righty did his part to hold the Reds in check but received no run support from his offense. Imanaga enters the All-Star Break with a 5-8 record and a 4.17 ERA.

Cease was at 106 pitches after seven, but he clearly wanted to continue, and after a nine-pitch eighth, he was allowed to start the ninth. He wound up throwing just three pitches then, the last of which was a clean single from Heliot Ramos. Tyler Walker replaced him and preserved the shutout against his former club. Cease, who pitched a no-hitter for the Padres in 2024, struck out 11 and walked three. He has six 10-strikeout games this season and 31 for his career. The first-time All-Star closes out the first half 6-4 with a 2.56 ERA. He’s second in the majors with 148 strikeouts and seventh in ERA.

Imanaga surrendered a leadoff homer to JJ Wetherholt in the first inning. Two walks and a hit brought a second run home to score in the third. Imanaga would pitch into the fifth, leaving with two outs and a runner on at 86 pitches. He walked three and collected eight strikeouts. The 32-year-old left-hander will take a 4.28 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and a 100/26 K/BB ratio across 103 innings into a start against the Orioles in Baltimore on Thursday.

In 33 career plate appearances with the bases loaded, Bieber hadn’t allowed a grand slam until the second inning today, when Randy Arozarena hit one. He also gave up a two-run homer in the fifth to end his day after 89 pitches. Bieber’s fastball averaged 91.9 mph today, which was basically a match for his first two outings, and he’s already given up six homers in 13 innings. His ability to hit the corners will probably improve as he continues to start regularly, but unfortunately, he just doesn’t seem like a mixed-league guy right now. He’ll likely make his next start Friday in San Diego.

Jeff Hoffman and Louis Varland finished up the four-hitter. Cease allowed three hits and walked one in his fourth scoreless start this season. He’s second in the majors with 137 strikeouts and 11th with a 2.79 ERA. He’s given up five homers, which is tied with Ranger Suarez for the lowest total among qualified starters. Although Cease finished second in the AL Cy Young balloting in 2022 and fourth in the NL balloting in 2026, the All-Star nod he’s sure to pick up on Saturday will be the first of his career.

Imanaga gave up nine hits, walked none and struck out four. The 32-year-old left-hander was pulled after getting the first out of the seventh inning and throwing 97 pitches. He’s earned the win in just one of his last nine starts. Imanaga’s ERA is 4.30. He’s lined up to face the Cardinals at home this weekend.

Bieber surrendered a leadoff homer to Joc Pederson in the first inning. He settled in nicely, holding the Rangers to just the one run into the sixth. He walked a batter and gave up a hit with one out before departing at 92 pitches with four strikeouts. He scattered five hits in all and issued four walks. The 31-year-old right-hander will look to carry some momentum after the encouraging start into a matchup against the Mariners in Seattle on Saturday.

Cease had trouble finding the zone in the first inning against the Rangers. It cost him, with a run scoring on a base hit after two free passes. He settled down for three quiet innings before running into more trouble in the fifth. Cease walked a batter and allowed a run in on two hits with two outs in the inning. He couldn’t make it out of the frame, ending his day at 107 pitches. Both inherited runners would come in to score, adding two more runs to his line. He struck out 10 to help limit the damage. The 30-year-old right-hander will look to bounce back when he takes a 3.02 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, and a 128/40 K/BB ratio across 83 1/3 innings into a start against the Mariners in Seattle on Friday.

After being pushed back two days due to rainouts, Imanaga did not have his best stuff here. Luckily, the three home runs he gave up didn’t come back to bite him. That’s mostly because the Mets managed to make six errors in this game, but I digress. None of those three homers were cheapies and all of them came against Imanaga’s fastball. His velocity was down just a smidge here too, which is something to watch rather than an immediate cause for concern. All in all, this was a poor result after it’d felt like he was righting the ship and Imanaga now has an ugly 4.40 ERA on the season. He’s scheduled for a two-start week coming up against the Padres and Cardinals with both games at home.