00:04Shane Bieber's decision to pick up his $16 million option and stay with the Toronto Blue Jays isn't just surprising, it's quietly seismic.
00:12After being flipped from Cleveland at the 2025 trade deadline, Bieber returned after more than a year and handled mid-rotation duties with minimal rust,
00:21posting a 3.57 ERA across seven starts with 23.3% strikeouts and a 4.4% walk rate.
00:30Then came the postseason. Nearly 19 innings of solid work with just enough vulnerability.
00:36Three homers, including the heartbreaker to Will Smith, reminding everyone this wasn't vintage 2020 Bieber, yet enough to draw a strong free agent interest.
00:45Bieber is only 30 and, even without ace form, would have drawn interest as a proven mid-rotation arm with a two- or three-year deal and an opt-out within reach in a thin pitching market.
00:56The $12 million net gain from accepting the option is below market for his profile.
01:01Comps like Walker Bueller, Charlie Morton, and Michael Lorenzen suggest he could have eclipsed it on a short-term bet.
01:07And while a nine-figure payday might have been optimistic, it wasn't unrealistic.
01:12Whatever the motive, the move is a coup for the Blue Jays, with Max Scherzer and Chris Bassett headed to free agency,
01:18and Beau Bichette potentially seeking north of $200 million.
01:22Bieber's return provides cost certainty and a dependable rotation piece alongside Kevin Gaussman and Jose Barrios,
01:29even as Toronto still needs another starter.
01:32For now, Bieber's calculated stay could be the most important move of the Jays' offseason,
01:37and it didn't cost them a dime more than they already committed.
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