Shane Bieber (shoulder) shut down for two weeks

This is a nasty surprise. Bieber had allowed just one run in each of his last two starts, taking him to 5-2 with a 4.53 ERA in 11 starts overall. No word yet on his chances of making it back before the end of the season, but it’s probably safe to drop him. The Jays could turn the rotation spot over to Simeon Woods Richardson for now or perhaps start the newly recalled Chad Dallas on Wednesday.

Bieber struck out a season-high seven and completed seven innings for the second time in 11 starts this season. the first time was also against the Rays in a 3-1 victory four weeks ago. He’s 3-0 with a 2.96 ERA in four starts this month, and he’ll be a nice fantasy option against the Royals next week.

It was a nice bounce-back outing for Bieber, who allowed five earned runs to the Phillies in his last start. The righty held the Yankees in check all night, with his lone earned run coming on a solo homer by Trent Grisham in the sixth inning. Bieber draws a tough Rays team in his next start, which is scheduled for Thursday in Tampa Bay.

Bieber struck out four and walked three as the Jays lost 7-6 in 12 innings. He’s had a few blowups since returning from injury, but Sunday’s damage came primarily on two Kyle Schwarber homers. Bieber has been leaning into his changeup more this season. Entering the day, it was his only pitch with a positive run value. A matchup against the Yankees next time out sounds intimidating, but they haven’t been the same lineup without Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Cody Bellinger.

Bieber gave up a 419-foot fly to Taylor Trammell in the fourth that would have been a homer in 25 ballparks and a 403-footer to Christian Walker in the fifth that would have left the yard in 11, but both were flyouts tonight. Bouncing back nicely from last week’s bizarre start against the Nationals in which he walked six and was pulled in the first, Bieber had two walks and six strikeouts tonight. Still, given that he’s been rather homer-prone, he’s not a great play this weekend in Philadelphia.

This makes plenty of sense. The Phillies need another starter for the rotation and potentially another outfield bat as well. The Blue Jays could send any combination of Kevin Gausman, Shane Bieber, George Springer, and Daulton Varsho. The Phillies may also be interested in Jeff Hoffman for the bullpen. Would the Blue Jays want to take a chance that they can “fix” Andrew Painter? There is still time to go here and nothing imminent, but it seems like a pairing that makes sense.

Truly bizarre. Bieber had never walked six in a game before, much less in an inning. Three of the walks came with the bases loaded to force in runs. Bieber said after the game that he was having a tough time gripping the ball after an hourlong rain delay to start the game, and he probably deserves the benefit of the doubt for now. He’s due to make his next start Monday against the Astros.

Bieber allowed only five hard-hit balls, which is good because he carried just a 21 percent whiff rate over 86 pitches. It’s still a concerningly-low strikeout rate as he managed only three today and has just 22 in 30 2/3 innings so far. Bieber has reeled off three consecutive starts with two or fewer earned runs allowed to lower his ERA from 9.00 to 4.70, but he still feels like a tenuous option at this point. He’s lined up against a good Nationals lineup for his next start.

Bieber’s velocity today wasn’t quite as good as in his final start before the break, but at 92.3 mph on average with his fastball, he was still better than in his first three outings back. He was able to generate 13 whiffs and finish with a 33 percent CSW while throwing only 80 pitches to get his 18 outs. If the velocity heads south again, Bieber probably won’t be helpful in mixed leagues. Right now, though, he’s looking good. He’ll get the Rays at home on Thursday.

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.