If Saturday night at the Los Angeles Dodgers’ stadium proved anything, it is that the Toronto Blue Jays cannot afford to slacken any longer. LA didn’t just beat Toronto; they exposed every crack of the team and rolled out a 9-1 win that felt decided well in advance. It was another sad blow in what’s been a shaky stretch for the AL East leader. And this only makes the front office itch to make an important decision.

And that probably involves Shane Bieber, the $26 million right-hander and two-time All-Star and 2020 Cy Young winner. He has continued his rehab assignment on Saturday with Triple-A Buffalo. There he threw 78 pitches over 5.2 innings, struck out six, and allowed just two runs. It was his second strong outing since he was acquired from Cleveland.

This puts him just one start away from a big league return. Now the only problem is that there is no obvious spot for him in the rotation. For now, the Jays are thinking of just adding him to the already full starting staff. John Schneider mentioned to Sportsnet that they “Haven’t really decided if it’s definitely going to be a six-man yet… It’s a definite possibility that we do that for 10 days or two weeks. But haven’t finalized it.”

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Well, if they do, this is about as close to a desperate call as you will hear when it comes to a baseball executive speaking. And it tells you what amount of urgency is boiling up for Toronto. Manager Schneider is not tipping his hand yet, and Jays could roll with a six-man rotation. However, with four off days coming in three weeks, the extra rest could mess with the starters’ rhythm.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers just gave the Jays a masterclass of postseason gameplay. Blake Snell mowed down the Jays’ lineup for five shutout innings. Max Muncy and Shohei Ohtani went deep, and the bullpen turned the late innings into a batting practice. Toronto’s offense, which was already missing George Springer, looked flat, and the bullpen struggles only widened the gap between the two teams.

Now Bieber’s impending return probably won’t solve everything, but it could change a little of the conversation. The Jays know the risk of rushing an ace from a major surgery, but they also know that they are in a playoff race, and waiting for perfect can mean waiting too long. And now, with August passing, they don’t have that kind of time.

Max Scherzer impresses as Blue Jays come up short

Now, sure, the Blue Jays didn’t beat the Dodgers, but let’s not bury the fact that this was not just another game. It was a meeting of two future Hall of Famers—Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer from LA and Toronto. Between them were five Cy Young Awards, four World Series rings, and countless career highlights. One interesting fact is that their paths crossed back in 2008, when they were just arms filling in for legends like Greg Maddux and Randy Johnson. Hence, a full circle moment for them and maybe the start of something huge for Scherzer.

Sure, Scherzer took the loss in a 5-1 game on Friday, but the numbers tell a different story: six innings, two earned runs, five strikeouts, and 98 pitches. The real catcher is the fact that his fastball averaged 94.2 mph—the best since September 2023, back when he was still with the Texas Rangers. In fact, according to SportsNet’s Arden Zwelling, Scherzer threw his four hardest pitches of the season in this game itself.

This is huge because not long ago, he was battling a thumb injury—the kind that’s been bugging him for years now. Afterwards, Scherzer did mention, “This is such a systemic injury for me, having this thumb problem be lasting so long, for really three years now, this is the first time I’m kind of getting out of it.” And at 41, he knows anything can pop up, but right now, he is finally feeling healthy. Since his return from the IL, he has gone 2-2 with a 3.92 ERA, striking out 44 in 39 innings. So his stuff is sharp, and his command is there. If this velocity sticks, then the Blue Jays have something they don’t have to worry about.