Shane Bieber became a Toronto Blue Jay on July 31.
Even in their most optimistic dreams, the team’s executives, coaching staff and players, likely including Bieber himself, could never have imagined he’d eventually be on the mound for one of the biggest games in franchise history.
Yet, that will be the case when Bieber toes the rubber on Monday night for Game 7 of the American League Championship Series against the visiting Seattle Mariners.
The Jays had rolled the dice in getting Bieber, sacrificing a coveted pitching prospect in Kal Stephen, knowing that it would probably either be a move that didn’t pan out down the line, or a masterstroke, with little in between. At the time, there were no guarantees that the former Cleveland ace would even be able to help much. He had only pitched