{"id":266389,"date":"2025-08-23T04:03:30","date_gmt":"2025-08-23T04:03:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/266389\/"},"modified":"2025-08-23T04:03:30","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T04:03:30","slug":"shane-bieber-gets-9-strikeouts-in-first-start-since-2024-leading-blue-jays-to-5-2-win-over-marlins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/266389\/","title":{"rendered":"Shane Bieber gets 9 strikeouts in first start since 2024, leading Blue Jays to 5-2 win over Marlins"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shane Bieber<\/a> didn’t look like a pitcher who missed nearly the entire 2024 campaign and most of this season in his first start since April 2 of last year.<\/p>\n

Bieber, acquired by the Toronto Blue Jays<\/a> at the July 31 trade deadline, notched nine strikeouts while allowing one run and two hits over six innings in a 5-2 win<\/a> over the Miami Marlins on Friday. He threw 87 pitches, 55 of them for strikes.<\/p>\n

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The right-hander struck out Xavier Edwards and Jakob Marsee to begin his start and retired five of the first six Marlins batters he faced. He left a baseball in the middle of the strike zone to the seventh batter, and Javier Sanoja hit it out for a solo home run<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bieber then retired the next 12 batters, striking out the side in the fourth. Marsee got the only other hit off the Blue Jays’ starter, hitting a changeup left in the middle of the zone for a single. Bieber then got Agust\u00edn Ram\u00edrez<\/a> to fly out on a slider for his final out of the ballgame.<\/p>\n

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Toronto manager John Schneider couldn’t hide his glee afterward, beginning his postgame press conference by saying<\/a>, “I’m a Belieber. I’ve got Bieber Fever.”<\/p>\n

Mason Fluharty<\/a> took over for Toronto in the seventh and retired two batters before Yariel Rodriguez<\/a> finished the inning. Rodriguez gave up a home run to Maximo Acosta<\/a> to lead off the eighth, leaving a fastball in the high outside corner of the zone.<\/p>\n

From there, the Marlins didn’t generate any more offense.<\/p>\n

The Blue Jays’ lineup made sure Bieber’s effort wasn’t wasted, providing him with three runs before he took the mound in the first inning. Daulton Varsho<\/a>‘s RBI double and a two-run single from Ty France<\/a> spotted Bieber a 3-0 lead. Toronto added two more runs in the sixth, when Varsho crushed a Ryan Gusto<\/a> cutter down the middle for his 14th homer of the season.<\/p>\n

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was again out of the Toronto lineup, missing his third consecutive game since leaving Monday’s contest with left hamstring inflammation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Gusto allowed five runs and seven hits in six innings with one walk and no strikeouts. His ERA increased to 5.05, and his record dropped to 7-6 in 26 appearances (16 starts) this season. Josh Simpson<\/a> and Valente Bellozo<\/a> combined for three scoreless innings of relief, allowing only one hit for the Marlins (60-68).<\/p>\n

The Blue Jays improved to 75-54 with the victory and now hold a five-game lead<\/a> for first place in the AL East with the New York Yankees’ 1-0 defeat<\/a> to the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox are in second at 70-59, while the Yankees are a half-game behind in third place.<\/p>\n