Shane Bieber looked like his 2020 self through the first two starts of the year. His velocity was back up and he was dominating the opposition. He logged 20 strikeouts in 12 innings pitched through two starts, and allowed 0 runs. Unfortunately for him and the Cleveland Guardians, his season is now over. Over the weekend it was announced that the Guardians’ ace will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery. A major blow for both Bieber and the Guardians who look to get back to the postseason after a down 2023 season. What are some of the Guardians’ options with Shane Bieber out?
"I was falling back in love with pitching."
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) April 8, 2024
Shane Bieber talks about the tough emotions involved with his injury and how his offseason led to a renewed positivity coming into this season. #ForTheLand | @CleGuardians pic.twitter.com/vdDo8oMOSH
The immediate answer is internal. Players with major league experience include Xzavion Curry and Ben Lively. Curry spent most of last season in the Guardians bullpen, making 41 appearances and only 9 starts. Curry also made two starts for the Guardians in 2022 and was a starter in the minors. Lively was a free-agent acquisition, coming over from the Cincinnati Reds. He has also pitched for the Kansas City Royals and Philadelphia Phillies. Lively is currently on the Injured List but has made one rehab start for the Guardians AAA team.
Joey Cantillo would have likely been the popular choice coming into the season to be the first man up in case of an injury. Cantillo is one of the Guardian’s top pitching prospects and showed some positive signs during Spring Training. Unfortunately, Cantillo is also on the Injured List with a hamstring injury, and it’s unclear when he will return.
Joey Cantillo notched 15 outs for @AkronRubberDuck — 13 (!!) came by strikeout.
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 4, 2023
The No. 17 @CleGuardians prospect lowered his ERA to 0.55 after a career-best performance: pic.twitter.com/XR1R1D39Eg
The Guardians aren’t as deep as normal in the starting pitching department, so the external route may be the best route to take. A trade would make sense given their starting pitching need, and the glutton of middle infield prospects they have. There are several starting pitchers the Guardians could trade for to replace Bieber. The Miami Marlins are off to a horrific start after a disappointing offseason. There were already trade rumors surrounding their starting pitchers, and that will only get louder. Someone like Jesús Luzardo would be attractive to the Guardians given his production and his multiple years of team control. The Oakland Athletics are another team off to a horrific start and not a bright future this year. Almost all of their starting pitchers are veterans, and likely available. Paul Blackburn, Ross Stripling, and Alex Wood are all guys that could be available and shouldn’t cost much.
It’s not ideal, but Cleveland will likely hold off on any trades to see what their guys can do, as well as wait to see what teams are out of it and which players are made available. Either way, it will be hard to replace the production that Bieber had provided for this club early on. The Guardians are off to their best start since 2011, and the AL Central will be up for grabs. It would be wise for the team to look to replace Bieber sooner rather than later, and not squander a golden opportunity.
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