Shane Bieber reverts back to the form of his Cy Young Award-winning season of 2020 by allowing just one run in six innings in his season debut last week
But a more important home, he’ll tell you, kept him centered when he needed that the most.
It helped return him to the game after a torn elbow ligament spun him out of baseball entirely last year.
“I was able to rely on my support system … my family,” Bieber told Noozhawk last week after returning to an MLB mound for the first time in 16 months.
He made sure that wife Kara and 5-month-old son Kav were at Miami’s LoanDepot Park on Aug. 22 when he pitched the Toronto Blue Jays to a 5-2 victory.
He allowed just two hits, no walks and one run while striking out nine Marlins in a six-inning start.
The biggest emotion Bieber felt afterward wasn’t satisfaction or even relief.
He said it was one of “gratitude” for what Kara — his college sweetheart at UCSB — Kav, parents Kristine and Chris, and older brother Travis provided during his “long road” back to baseball.
Shane Bieber and wife Kara with their 5-month-old son, Kav, at Miami’s LoanDepot Park before his season debut with the Toronto Blue Jays. Credit: Bieber family photo
“It was just awesome, sharing this moment with them,” he said.
And now the ace who pitched the Gauchos to the 2016 College World Series has the American League East-leading Blue Jays dreaming about their own World Series.
A Canadian team hasn’t made it to the championship series of America’s Pastime since Toronto won its second-straight October Classic 32 years ago.
“He raises the floor immediately,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider gushed after the win at Miami, “and he can definitely raise the ceiling pretty high for us.”
Bieber, born and bred in Southern California, is even trying to learn the words to “O Canada,” the country’s national anthem.
“I can’t rip it off for you right now, but I could sing along with it,” he said after last week’s game. “I feel like I’m getting more comfortable.”
In Arm’s Way
Bieber’s victory at Miami came in his first MLB appearance since he last pitched for the Cleveland Guardians on April 2, 2024.
He shut out the Seattle Mariners that day with another one of his six-inning, nine-strikeout gems.
But the pain in his right elbow was no April Fool’s joke.
Bieber had felt it building for a long time, having missed parts of the three seasons that followed his A.L. Cy Young Award-winning year of 2020.
“For the last few years, I was fighting myself in my head a little bit,” he said. “I don’t know if that was due to not feeling that great or just wanting to continue to achieve more.”
Enough was enough after he gutted out last year’s early season game in Seattle.
Shane Bieber has adapted well to his new surroundings with the Toronto Blue Jays after having spent nearly all of his eight-year Major League Baseball career with the Cleveland Guardians. Credit: Toronto Blue Jays photo
“Ultimately, I had a failing ligament,” Bieber said. “I was hoping that it was just general soreness and that it would go away.
“I think in my gut I knew what was going on. Surgery was the only option.”
Surgeons performed the Tommy John procedure to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow 10 days after his last game at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park.
“The hardest part was the three to four days post-surgery,” he said.
“The light was out of my eyes a little bit.”
Family, however, brightened his outlook again.
Bieber, who married Kara Maxine Kavajecz in January 2023, moved with his wife to Goodyear, Arizona, to begin his rehabilitation with the trainers at the Guardians’ player development complex.
They soon learned that another major change was entering their lives: Kara was expecting their first child.
Kav McClain — named after Kara’s late mother — was born in March, just as Shane was ramping up his throwing sessions.
“I was able to be there for her like she’s always been there for me throughout my career,” Bieber said. “Roles kind of switched.
“Obviously I was taking care of what I had to take care of rehab-wise, but I wasn’t missing any of those appointments, and sharing all those experiences with her was extremely special.
“It’s something I’ll be forever grateful for.”
Minors Adjustment
His first game back was on May 31 — just three days before he turned 30 — with a rehab outing in the Arizona Complex League.
The Rookie League hitters were no match for the Spin Doctor. Bieber struck out 10 of them in 4⅓ innings over the course of two outings.
The Guardians put him on a methodical, upward progression to High-A Lake County and then Double-A Akron.
He pitched 17 innings in seven rehab starts altogether, striking out 22, walking just three, and allowing only six earned runs for an ERA of 1.86.
Shane Bieber kept his longtime, Major League Baseball number after getting traded from Cleveland to Toronto on July 31. Struggling relief pitcher Chad Green had worn No. 57 for the Blue Jays until the club designated him for assignment on July 29 and then released him after he cleared waivers. Credit: Toronto Blue Jays photo
But he was forced to face another one of life’s changeups in the process.
The Guardians dealt him to Toronto for pitcher Khal Stephen — one of the Blue Jays’ top minor-league prospects — in the final hours before the MLB trade deadline of July 31.
Bieber admitted to feeling “a range of emotions.”
“There’s no reason to shy away from that, right?” he said. “(Cleveland) is the only organization that I’ve known and that my family has known.”
But he also felt touched by how many in the Blue Jays’ orbit “reached out to not just myself, but my wife … That means the world to us.”
Toronto general manager Ross Atkins admitted that it was a gamble to trade for a pitcher — even a former Cy Young Award winner — who was still rehabbing a major injury.
“The risk is almost, in some ways, the exciting aspect of it because of the upside,” he said. “The upside is just so big.”
Bieber continued to toil in the minors, but now for the Blue Jays’ Triple-A farm club in Buffalo, New York.
Fitting in, however, is right up the alley of the former Gaucho.
“For a guy of his stature on Major League rehab to come out on the field and just be one of the guys, that’s a testament to his character,” Candaele said. “He’s respectful of his teammates.
“It may seem like a trivial thing, but it means a lot to the players who are here.”
Nobody was more affected than Bisons pitcher Adam Macko. He sought Bieber’s counsel on everything from off-day routines to how to keep your chin up in a game that often bruises it.
“That guy would have every right to be out here and do his own thing and get out and not talk to anybody,” Macko told Sportsnet Canada reporter Kristina Rutherford. “But it wasn’t long before I realized, ‘OK, you’re a really cool guy and I can just be myself around you and be comfortable and talk baseball.’
“He’s very methodical. He has a purpose behind everything that he does.”
Pitch Perfect
Bieber’s attention to detail — even when he was a skinny teenager at Laguna Hills High School — separated him from the big-league prospects who were throwing the ball 10 mph faster.
Baseball, he admitted, had been his “outlet” as a child.
Shane Bieber grew up on the Little League diamonds of Orange County and played at Laguna Hills High School before UCSB recruited him as a walk-on athlete. Gaucho coach Andrew Checketts awarded him a scholarship after his freshman season. Credit: Bieber family photo
“My parents teased the term a little bit loosely, but anger issues — my fiery sense — just came from a lot of emotions, a lot of want, a lot of competitiveness,” he said.
The lack of college scholarship offers only fueled that fire.
“I was a bit overlooked in high school,” said Bieber, who went 8-4 with a 1.40 ERA, 77 strikeouts and just 16 walks during his senior season at Laguna Hills. “I was making all these decisions for my future with the feeling that I was kind of playing with house money.
“As long as I had an opportunity, I was going to take advantage of that opportunity.”
He took that mindset into the rehabilitation process.
“I know he’s going to work until he gets better,” Kara said. “His work ethic is like nobody else I know, so my worry was never that.”
Bieber has relaxed some of the meticulous regimen that became the stuff of legend at UCSB.
“It was too mentally exhausting to be counting every rep of trunk twists in warmups and all that stuff,” he said.
“Although I’m very routine-oriented, if it doesn’t go perfectly, I can still go out there and perform.”
Gaucho Great
His diligence in mastering the craft of pitching did upgrade him at UCSB from that of a recruited walk-on to the ace who won 23 games from 2014 to 2016.
Bieber ranked fifth nationally in pitching wins during his final Gaucho season with a 12-4 record. He’s also fourth in the Gaucho record books for career strikeouts (237) and seventh in ERA (2.74).
His ability to stay in control during the most dire of situations is best illustrated by the low number of bases on balls he’s allowed.
He walked just 42 batters during his 305 innings as a Gaucho and only 188 so far in the 854⅓ innings of his MLB career.
But the fire that flared within Bieber as a boy still empowers him as a big leaguer.
Shane Bieber ranked fifth in the nation with his 12 pitching victories during the 2016 season, advancing UCSB through the NCAA Regional at Vanderbilt and the Super Regional at Louisville to reach the first College World Series in school history. Credit: UCSB Athletics photo
“Taking the mound in a big-league baseball game is a surreal experience,” he said. “It can get a little squirrely from time to time, and full of emotion.”
He admits that the regression from his Cy Young Award-winning season of 2020 put “a bit of a chip on my shoulder … I’m excited to show it.”
Bieber is especially eager to show off his improved changeup.
“A lot of guys are able to throw it slow, but I was just never able to, so I decided to change that,” he explained. “I had a firmer changeup, so I had to figure out the right grip and throw it hard and let it dive for me.”
Getting the time to work on it became the silver lining of his injury.
“I pride myself on handling adversity well,” he said. “Sometimes when you’re thrust into a new situation, it can kind of be rejuvenating.”
Thrusting a newborn baby into the routine does cut into a daddy’s sleep time, but he’s adjusted to that, as well.
“It’s all joy, no matter what,” Bieber said. “I can’t imagine not having him in our family.
“He’s really allowed us to grow and step up as adults, obviously.
“It’s quite the responsibility, but we were ready for it, and he just gives us a lot more meaning.”
The injury — and the family that got him through it — also gave Shane Bieber some new perspective about himself.
“Baseball is what I do,” he said, “but it’s not who I am.”
The person he is, however, is what helped put him back in the game.
LARA LIWANAG ON I-LISTEN: STRENGTH, PURPOSE, AND FIGHTING FOR FILIPINO ATHLETES
Episode dropping this Wednesday December 31, 2025 5PM on GMA Public Affairs Youtube Channel, Spotify and Apple Podcast
The upcoming episode of I-Listen spotlights Lara Liwanag—elite CrossFit athlete, coach, and advocate for inclusive sports—whose journey proves that strength goes far beyond physical power.
Known as the “clutch queen” after her standout performance on Physical: Asia, Lara represented the Philippines on an international stage, competing against some of the strongest athletes in the region. Despite being underdogs with no combat sports background, Lara and her teammate pushed through fear, injury, and pressure to give an all-out performance for the country. “Manalo man o matalo,” Lara says, “we did it for the Philippines.”
Beyond competition, Lara opens up about her long road as an athlete—from childhood dreams of representing the country, to becoming a national CrossFit champion, to facing injuries, setbacks, and online criticism. A registered nurse by profession, Lara chose to follow her true calling in fitness, even when others questioned her path. “Everything happens for a reason,” she shares. “Nandito ako ngayon dahil may purpose.”
Today, Lara is not only an athlete but a mentor. Through her gym and grassroots training initiatives with Olympian Hidilyn Diaz, she coaches children—many from underprivileged backgrounds—free of charge, helping them discover their potential through sports. Her advocacy highlights a pressing issue: the lack of support and funding for Filipino athletes, despite the abundance of raw talent across the country.
In her I-Listen interview, Lara delivers a powerful message to young women and aspiring athletes: strength is beautiful, fitness is for everyone, and confidence is built by simply starting. “Kung kaya ko, kaya niyo rin,” she says.
Dropping this Wednesday, December 31, 2025, this episode of i-Listen is a story of grit, faith, and purpose—reminding us that real strength lies in perseverance, service, and lifting others as you rise.
The University of Lynchburg announced Joshua Knapp as the head coach of the Hornets’ Men’s Volleyball Program in December 2025. He arrived in the Hill City with experience as a coach, student-athlete, and official, bringing a versatile background that will support the continued growth of the Hornets’ emerging men’s volleyball operation.
Knapp most recently served as the head coach for the Liberty University men’s club volleyball program, where he led the team since January 2023. In that role, he managed all aspects of the program, including training direction, recruitment efforts, and the coordination of support staff. Prior to taking over as head coach, he worked with the Flames as an assistant coach from August 2022 to January 2023, helping integrate skills development, training plans, and travel logistics for the team.
In addition to his coaching experience, Knapp is also a certified volleyball official with the Virginia High School League and the NCAA, a role he began in August 2025. His work as an official allowed him to use working knowledge of volleyball rules, regulations, and procedures while exhibiting professionalism through all interactions.
A former two-sport student-athlete at Liberty University, Knapp competed for four years in a high-level collegiate setting and served as a team captain for the men’s volleyball team from 2020 through 2022. Knapp earned his B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies from Liberty University in 2022, completing academic specializations in business, sports management, and carpentry.
LONGVIEW – State champion Blum dominated voting for the Blue Bell/Texas Sports Writers Association Class A All-State Volleyball Team for the 2025 season.
Blum’s Kinsley McPherson earned Player of the Year honors, and Blum head coach Lauren McPherson was named Coach of the Year.
Voting was conducted by TSWA members based on nominations from coaches and media members from around the state.
TEMPE – The 2026 Sun Devil Beach Volleyball schedule has been announced, marking the Sand Devils’ third season with head coach Kristen Glattfelder and second in the Big 12 conference.
The Sand Devils have 10 weekends of competition, two of them at home. The team will face 10 of the 16 teams that competed in the 2025 NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship and will play against all four national semifinalists (TCU, LMU, Cal Poly and UCLA).
ASU will start its season across the Valley at the Canyon Classic at Grand Canyon from February 20-21. The Sand Devils will face host GCU along with Colorado Mesa, UC Davis and reigning 2025 NCAA Champion and Big 12 Champion TCU.
The Sun Devils will continue to stay in state and head south to Tucson to compete in the Cactus Classic on February 27, where they will compete against Arizona and Georgia State.
The home opener will be from March 6-7, as ASU will host Arizona, Southern Miss, Arizona Christian and Nebraska at the Sun Devil Classic.
The Sand Devils will be out of state for three-consecutive weeks. From March 13-14, they will compete in Manhattan Beach at the East Meets West Invitational where they will go head-to-head against NCAA runner-up LMU, as well as UCLA, Hawai’i and Cal. ASU will travel to LSU for the Death Volley Invitational from March 20–21, facing Georgia State, Texas, Florida State and LSU, before heading to TCU for the Big 12 Preview Tournament from March 27–28.
To start the final month of the regular season, the Maroon and Gold will head home and host the Sparky Invitational where they’ll play Stetson, GCU, FIU and Ottawa from April 3-4. The Sand Devils will be back on the road the following week and compete at the COE Challenge at Cal Poly from April 10-11 and face California, Cal Poly and UCLA.
ASU will play at lone dual at Long Beach State on April 17 before heading to Tucson for the Big 12 Championships on April 23 and 24.
In its first Big 12 season, Arizona State went 22-14, setting a new win record for the program. The Sand Devils also went 9-1 on home sand and finished the season ranked No. 12 in the AVCA Coaches Poll. The team also finished second at the first Big 12 Beach Volleyball Championships, falling to TCU 3-2.
The program and players earned several awards and accolades after finishing second in the league. Daniella Kensinger, Ava Kirunchyk and Samaya Morin were all named to the Big 12 All-Conference Team. Morin was also named an AVCA Second Team All-American. In addition, the team had three pairs named Big 12 Pair of the Week.
AMES, Iowa – Iowa State concludes 2025 with a 23-8 record, showing tremendous turnaround after going 10-18 last season. It is the highest win total since 2011, while ISU also went 12-6 in Big 12 play to finish tied for third after being chosen ninth in the preseason poll.
Cyclones wrapped the season earning national and conference awards including AVCA Libero of the Year, AVCA Second Team All-America, Big 12 Libero of the Year and Big 12 Setter of the Year.
Iowa State is ranked in the final AVCA Coaches Poll for the first time since 2017 earning the rank of T-No. 22. It’s the highest final ranking in 13 seasons (2012, No. 14). The Cyclones capped the season in the second round of the NCAA Championship, ISU’s 18th trip to the tournament.
Rachel Van Gorp, National Libero of the Year
Van Gorp showed the nation she is the best of the best becoming the inaugural AVCA Libero of the Year. The true sophomore, in her first full season at the position, compiled a list of awards also including AVCA Second Team All-America, AVCA First Team All-Region, Big 12 Libero of the Year, First Team All-Big 12 and two Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Iowa State took home Big 12 Libero and Setter of the Year, while five Cyclones were placed on All-Big 12 Teams. Van Gorp was the unanimous choice for Libero of the Year, while Morgan Brandt secured Setter of the Year. Both were First Team All-Big 12 selections, and Tierney Jackson was placed on season team. True freshmen Alea Goolsby and Reagan Hanfelt earned Big 12 All-Rookie Team.
Leading the Conference
ISU ends 2025 as the Big 12 leader in digs (15.12 per set) and kills (13.98 per set). The Cyclones ranked top 25 nationally in kills (No. 18) and assists (12.91 per set, No. 24), helping lead Iowa State to hit at .245 on the season. The efficiency is the fourth-highest single-season hitting percentage in program history.
2025 By the Numbers
4 – ISU had four ranked wins on the season, the most since 2012. The Cyclones were the only Big 12 team to take down Arizona State this season and ended No. 6 ASU’s 12-match win streak and 26-match Big 12 win streak.
4 – Morgan Brandt ends her Iowa State career ranking fourth in program history with 3,787 assists. The total led all 2025 Big 12 active players.
7 – The Cyclones hit over .300 in seven matches. ISU had a stretch of three straight hitting over .400, a program first, while two of those match efficiencies now rank in the program all-time top 10.
8 – Iowa State ended non-conference with a record of 10-1, the best mark in eight seasons.
10 – Maya Duckworth entered the ISU top 10 in career kills and concludes her career with 1,073. Duckworth was the 12th in program history to join the 1,000-kill club.
12 – Iowa State sealed 12 Big 12 wins for the first time since 2012.
15 – ISU opened the season at 5-0 without losing a set, one of the final three teams to begins with 15 set wins. It marked the first time in program history to open the season with a 15-0 set record.
400 – Christy Johnson-Lynch celebrated win No. 400 this season vs. No. 16 TCU. Johnson-Lynch now owns 11 20-win seasons and 48 top 25 wins, with 12 in the top 10.
Kansas State volleyball All-American Shaylee Myers announced she is stepping away from the sport and will not pursue a professional career.
The Lincoln, Nebraska native was selected in the second round of last month’s Pro Volleyball Federation draft by the Atlanta Vibe, but has decided not to continue playing beyond her collegiate career.
Myers closed her time in Manhattan with one of the most decorated seasons the program has seen. She earned All-America Honorable Mention recognition from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA), becoming the 12th player in school history to receive the honor and the second under head coach Jason Mansfield, joining former Wildcat teammate Aliyah Carter.
Her All-America nod capped a historic senior campaign filled with accolades. Myers was named the program’s first-ever AVCA Region Player of the Year, earned AVCA First Team All-Region honors and was a unanimous First Team All-Big 12 selection. She also claimed three Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week awards during the season.
Statistically, Myers rewrote the K-State record book. She finished her senior year with 498 kills (4.70 per set) and 547.0 points (5.16 per set), setting the rally-scoring era single-season record for kills per set and tying for third-most total kills in that era. Her 34-kill performance against West Virginia on Oct. 1 marked the Big 12’s top single-match output of the season.
Myers reached another milestone during the NCAA Tournament, becoming just the 20th player in program history to surpass 1,000 career kills. She finished her career with 1,029 kills and 1,148.5 points, ranking among the program’s top 25 in multiple career categories.
K-State concluded the 2025 season at 18-10 overall and 10-8 in Big 12 play, earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament — the program’s 19th postseason appearance and first under Mansfield.
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