Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim / Los Angeles Angels Minor leagues In the
2008 MLB draft, Shoemaker went unselected. He received a $10,000
signing bonus. Shoemaker began the 2009 season with the
Cedar Rapids Kernels of the
Single–A Midwest League as a relief pitcher. After pitching to a 1-0 record and a 6.57 ERA in his first seven games, they demoted him to extended
spring training in May. He returned to Cedar Rapids in June. Shoemaker pitched for the
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes of the
High–A California League in 2010. Shoemaker began the 2011 season with the
Salt Lake Bees of the
Triple–A Pacific Coast League, and was demoted to the
Arkansas Travelers of the
Double–A Texas League in May. He appeared in the Texas League All-Star Game in June. He was named the Texas League Pitcher of the Year and the Angels' Minor League Pitcher of the Year, after leading the league with 12
wins, a 2.21 ERA, and 1.03
walks plus hits per inning pitched. The Angels invited Shoemaker to spring training with the Angels in 2012, receiving an opportunity to compete for the open fifth starter role for the Angels. He pitched for Salt Lake during the 2012 and 2013 seasons.
Major leagues On September 15, 2013, the Angels promoted Shoemaker to the major leagues. He made his MLB debut on September 20, allowing no runs and striking out five batters to record a win. Shoemaker won the
American League (AL)
Rookie of the Month and
Pitcher of the Month Awards. On September 10, 2014, Shoemaker earned his 15th win – a new Angels' rookie record. He suffered a strained rib cage the next week, and recovered in time for the
MLB postseason. Shoemaker finished the season with a 16-4 record with 124 strikeouts in 136 innings pitched. He took second place, behind
José Abreu, in AL
Rookie of the Year Award voting. After the season, Shoemaker appeared in the
2014 Major League Baseball Japan All-Star Series, getting the win in a game against the Japanese All-Star team. After his solid 2014 season, Shoemaker opened 2015 as the Angels #3 starter. He experienced inconsistency throughout the 2015 campaign, leading to his demotion to Triple-A Salt Lake on August 16. He was called up when rosters expanded in September. Shoemaker finished 7-10 with a 4.46 ERA in 24 starts. Shoemaker began the 2016 season in the Angels rotation but after posting an ERA of 9.15 in 5 starts, the Angels sent him down to AAA. He was called up a week later after an injury to
Garrett Richards. On September 4, 2016, against the Seattle Mariners, Shoemaker was struck in the head by a 105 mph line drive and left the game. The impact left Shoemaker with a small skull fracture and small hematoma. The injury eventually ended his 2016 season. The same night, he underwent surgery on his skull to stop the bleeding. Shoemaker's 2017 season was cut short due to injury for the second straight season. He pitched in 14 starts with a 6-3 record. Shoemaker, with continued better health, began the 2018 season in the rotation but was soon placed on the disabled list with a forearm injury, the same injury that sidelined him the previous season. He began a throwing program at the end of April. He was placed on the 60 day disabled list after undergoing forearm surgery on May 13. He made his return to the rotation at the end of the season, finishing the 2018 season with a 2-2 record in 7 starts. On November 30, 2018, the Angels non-tendered Shoemaker, making him a free agent.
Toronto Blue Jays On December 28, 2018, Shoemaker signed a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the
Toronto Blue Jays. On March 29, 2019, he made his Blue Jays debut, throwing seven scoreless innings and earning the win against the
Detroit Tigers. On April 20, Shoemaker left a game against the
Oakland Athletics in the fourth inning after injuring his left knee in a rundown play. An MRI revealed he had torn his
anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and would miss the rest of the season. Before the injury, he had a 3–0 record with a 1.57 ERA through five starts. With the
2020 Toronto Blue Jays, Shoemaker appeared in 6 games, compiling a 0-1 record with 4.71 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 28.2 innings pitched.
Minnesota Twins On February 15, 2021, Shoemaker signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the
Minnesota Twins. Shoemaker won his first start of the season and authored a mediocre start following it. He lost his next two starts before recording, in his words, "the worst start of [his] career", giving up 9 runs (8 earned) in innings to the
Kansas City Royals. After briefly recovering and picking up his second win, he lost his next 3 decisions, the last another poor start against the Royals that propelled his ERA to 5.90. On June 4, he recorded the worst start of his career, surrendering 9 runs to the Royals again (8 of them earned) while recording just one out before being removed from the game; the appearance ballooned his season ERA from 5.90 to 7.38. Relegated to the bullpen a week later, he continued to struggle in a relief role before briefly rebounding on the June 21 and 24. After authoring another brutal appearance on June 30 - surrendering 8 earned runs in a relief appearance of just innings - he was designated for assignment by the Twins the next day with a season ERA of 8.06. On July 5, Shoemaker cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to the Triple-A
St. Paul Saints. On August 3, Shoemaker was released by the Twins.
San Francisco Giants On August 7, 2021, Shoemaker signed a minor league contract with the
San Francisco Giants. In nine appearances (eight starts) for the Triple-A
Sacramento River Cats, he posted a 4-3 record and 4.83 ERA with 54 strikeouts across innings pitched. Shoemaker elected free agency following the season on November 7.
Yomiuri Giants On February 28, 2022, Shoemaker signed with the
Yomiuri Giants of
Nippon Professional Baseball. In 18 appearances for Yomiuri, he compiled a 4-8 record and 4.25 ERA with 65 strikeouts across innings pitched. Shoemaker became a free agent following the season. ==Personal life==