The MLB trade deadline was particularly kind to the Toronto Blue Jays this year, allowing them to make a deal for former AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber, the Cleveland Guardians ace who had been sidelined since April 2024 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Finally, after over a year of inactivity, Bieber made his debut for his new team late in August, and it looked to be shades of the 2020 Bieber that won the Pitching Triple Crown on his way to pitching’s most prestigious award in the midst of a COVID-stricken season.
And if anyone knows how much of a challenge he’ll present in the postseason, it’s Yankees manager Aaron Boone, whose lineup will have to excel against Bieber tonight in order to avoid elimination.
“He’ll Be a Challenge For Us”
In an interview with MLB.com, the former Yankee playoff hero-turned manager did not hold back in his kudos to the Blue Jays for making a deal for the former Cleveland arm, and how beating him would not be an easy task despite the firepower the Bronx Bombers’ lineup holds.
“He looks like Bieber to me,” Boone said to Keegan Matheson. “I know it was obviously a long road back for him. Good pickup by the Blue Jays being able to get him and being able to insert him into their rotation. He'll be a challenge for us.”
Bieber has seen playoff starts against the Yankees go both ways for him, as in his award-winning 2020 season with the Guardians, he allowed nine hits and seven earned runs in a 12-3 loss to the Yanks, which included a two-run home run to Aaron Judge.
He would make up for the performance two years later, striking out seven in a 5.2 inning outing, one that eventually led to a 4-2 Cleveland win.
The Yankees and Blue Jays play Game 3 at Yankee Stadium at 8:08 EST, with Bieber facing New York’s Carlos Rodon on the mound.