Toronto's rotation depth to be tested with Bieber's spring delayed, Francis out until '27

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- You can never have enough starting pitching. Just over 12 hours before Blue Jays pitchers and catchers officially report for Spring Training, we can see why.

Shane Bieber's ramp-up will be delayed this spring, manager John Schneider announced on Tuesday, the result of some right forearm inflammation that’s nagged him since the end of the 2025 World Series run. On top of that, depth piece Bowden Francis will undergo UCL reconstruction surgery and miss the entire 2026 season.

“[Bieber's] here, he’s feeling good and he’s playing catch out to 90 feet,” Schneider said. “We’re being cautious by saying not [pitching] at the beginning of the year and we’ll work through it with Shane. We’ll go week-to-week with him and see how it’s going. No procedures or anything in the offseason, it’s just a high-level pitcher coming off Tommy John and pitching longer than he probably expected in some really high-stress outings. We’re just taking a really, really cautious approach with him.”

Bieber was the Blue Jays’ big Trade Deadline splash last July, a unique move given that he was still in the final days of his Tommy John rehab. Once he returned, the former Cy Young Award winner threw 40 1/3 innings down the stretch and another 18 2/3 in the postseason.

It came as a surprise to many of the industry when Bieber opted into his $16 million player option for 2026 instead of testing free agency immediately, but now, the focus shifts to his health and charting out Bieber’s season. This is exactly why the Blue Jays built out such impressive pitching depth, even if this is far earlier than they wanted to use it.

What this means for Bieber

Day by day, week by week, this is worth monitoring throughout Spring Training. Treat it like a player returning from an injury, with all of the usual steps from throwing at 90 feet, throwing at a distance, throwing off the mound and so on.

Don’t expect any timelines, though. The Blue Jays will take things slowly with Bieber. Especially coming off the 2025 World Series run and all of its lessons, both sides know that having Bieber healthy for September and October is what’s most important.

“We share his expectation, which is to pitch a lot and to have a significant impact on his entire season,” general manager Ross Atkins said. “The reason we’re not specific with those timelines is because of the additional pressure that we feel is unneeded. We want it to make the most sense for him and make the most sense for us to win as many games as possible.”

What this means for José Berríos

All along, the boring answer to the José Berríos question has been the likeliest outcome: That it would work itself out, somehow, some way. It appears that’s already happened.

Berríos was not happy with how his 2025 season ended. He first was bumped to the bullpen, then he landed on the IL, a difficult sequence for the man known as “La Makina” with a reputation for making every start, every season. Now, the Blue Jays want to move forward with Berríos.

“That’s been handled,” Schneider said. “I think José realizes that it probably could have been handled a little bit differently on everyone’s end, really. Looking back, I wish we had done things a little bit differently, and I’m sure he does as well. He’s the normal José that’s coming in ready. He’s had conversations with the guys he needs to have conversations with. We want to just put that behind us.”

This feels settled, at least for now. Berríos will open the season in the rotation, which is right where he’s always belonged.

What this means for: The Blue Jays’ depth

The loss of Francis is meaningful. To have an optionable depth starter in Triple-A is always valuable, but now that Francis is done until 2027 and Bieber could be a late start this season, the Blue Jays’ rotation depth is thinning.

Eric Lauer will be stretched out and, after singlehandedly saving the rotation in 2025, the Blue Jays know he’s up to the task. Top left-handed pitching prospect Ricky Tiedemann will pitch in shorter stints for now, after just finishing his Tommy John rehab, but keep an eye on Gage Stanifer, who broke out in 2025 and could be in Triple-A early this season.

The Blue Jays need this to be the last of the bad news, though. You can never have enough pitching, and if you ever ask “why?”, you rarely have to wait long for an answer.