Shane Bieber put on 15-Day IL

For those who, like me, didn't know what a teres major is, it's a muscle that runs from your shoulder blade to your humerus. The good news is that it's a different injury from the elbow-forearm issue that cost him the first half of the season. The bad news is that Bieber, who's managed just 20 appearances over the past three seasons combined, will now be out for a large chunk of the remainder of the season if not all of it.

This is a blow for a team that had been playing its first good baseball of the season. They Jays just won six of seven series in a stretch that included 23 games in 24 days and wins at the contending Phillies and Astros and against each of the three AL East rivals in the playoff picture. They're currently two games out of the third wildcard, and don't play another team with a winning record this year. Bieber himself has been a part of that run, with a 2.96 ERA and 22:6 K:BB ratio in August.

The Jays' rotation right now starts promisingly with Cy Young contender Dylan Cease and deadline acquisition Jose Soriano, but then it's Max Scherzer (age + ERA rounds to 50), Spencer Arrighetti (himself just off the IL and with very shaky numbers), and ???. Simeon Woods Richardson has worked as a starter this season, but has recently been converted to the bullpen and probably isn't stretched out for 4+ innings anymore. Dallas himself converted to the bullpen a little over a month ago and hasn't gone two full innings since. Ditto Spencer Miles, who at any rate has more than tripled his previous pro innings total (not high, total) so far in 2026. He's also been good enough that the team should be treating him as a part of the 2027 plan and beyond, so protecting his arm is a priority. Trey Yesavage and Jameson Taillon were both reported to be throwing on flat ground last week, but neither seems likely to jump directly back into the rotation soon. Jake Bloss , the most promising AAA option, has missed a month and a half (coincidentally also with a teres major strain) and is most likely done for 2026.