Blue Jays: Reviewing Shane Bieber’s postseason record

The Toronto Blue Jays are heading to Yankee Stadium, with the squad looking to clinch the ALDS after taking the first two games on home soil. Kevin Gausman and Trey Yesavage did their part on the mound, and the Jays’ bats torched the Yankees’ pitching staff, putting up 23 runs to take a commanding series lead as it heads back south of the border.

With Toronto now on the road, manager John Schneider is turning to veteran right-hander Shane Bieber to get the job done in the Bronx. Joining the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, Bieber made seven starts for his new club down the stretch, authoring a 3.57 ERA and a 4.47 FIP across 40 1/3 innings. He struck out 37 batters to the tune of an 8.3 K/9 and commanded the strike zone, pitching to a 1.6 BB/9 and a 1.017 WHIP during that time.

Given his background and how he finished the year, Bieber was always going to be one arm that Schneider leaned on in October. When healthy, the California product dominates on the mound, owning a career 3.24 ERA through 143 outings. However, has this success translated to the postseason?

Before joining the Jays, Bieber had spent his entire career in Cleveland, dating back to his 2018 big league debut in the AL Central. Injuries have seen him miss considerable time during the previous eight-year stint, and although Cleveland has made the postseason four times since his debut (2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024), he has only appeared in the 2020 and 2022 series.

2020 – Cleveland vs. New York Yankees – AL Wild Card

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the league was shortened to just 60 games, and it was decided that there would be a new playoff format that year to accommodate the schedule change. The Guardians finished second in the AL Central and wound up facing the New York Yankees in a three-game AL Wild Card matchup.

Bieber, who ended up winning the AL Cy Young Award that campaign, was tasked with starting the first game of the series, going opposite Gerrit Cole, and the right-hander struggled in his first postseason matchup. He allowed nine hits and seven earned runs across 4 2/3 innings, walking two batters while striking out seven. Aaron Judge hit a two-run home run in the first inning to put the Yankees on the board early, and he surrendered two more homers before being lifted during the fifth inning. Cleveland would go on to lose the next game and was bounced from the postseason.