Shane Bieber is headed to the IL right when the Blue Jays needed him most.
Toronto placed him on the 15-day IL with right teres major inflammation, retroactive to Aug. 21.
The corresponding move brings right-hander Chad Dallas up from Triple-A. He'll be active tonight.
This one stings. Bieber had been the best version of himself in weeks, carrying a 2.96 ERA over his last four starts before this injury.
That stretch included three outings where he allowed just three total runs across 18.2 innings against the Astros, Yankees, and Rays.
He'd become exactly the pitcher Toronto hoped for when it chose to hold onto him at the trade deadline instead of moving him for prospects.
Now that momentum gets paused during the most critical stretch of the season.
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Why the timing makes this injury especially painful
The retroactive date to Aug. 21 means Bieber's clock has already been running, which could shorten the practical length of his absence somewhat.
Teres major issues in pitchers can range from a short-term nuisance to something that lingers if not managed carefully.
Toronto hasn't given a specific target return date yet.
Dallas gets thrown into the fire immediately, active tonight for a Blue Jays team that's rearranging its rotation more than once this season already.
The Blue Jays are chasing a wild-card spot with a rotation that had finally started to stabilize behind Dylan Cease, Jose Soriano, and a resurgent Bieber.
Losing him now undoes some of that stability right as Toronto opens a stretch it needs to win.
Whether Dallas can hold down a rotation spot, or this turns into another bullpen-game stretch for John Schneider, is the immediate question. The bigger one is how long Bieber is actually out.
How worried are you about the Blue Jays' rotation now that Shane Bieber is on the IL?
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