The Cleveland Guardians need Tanner Bibee to get back to his usual ways.
Bibee was expected to be the team’s de facto ace this season, but it hasn’t always been that way.
He hasn’t had the strong season he was projected to have, mostly due to inconsistency.
Even so, he’s also shown glimpses of his usual way, so it’s not like he doesn’t have it anymore.
Still, a report by Tim Stebbins of MLB.com shows that some of his metrics haven’t been as good as they’ve been in the past, and it may go well beyond the naked eye:
“Bibee has seen some of his underlying metrics go up this season compared to last, when he recorded a 3.47 ERA in 31 starts. His walk rate was 7.4 percent entering Saturday (6.2 percent in ‘24); his hard-hit rate was 37.6 percent (36.9 in ‘24); and he had allowed 1.51 homers per nine innings (1.14 in ‘24),” Stebbins wrote.
Fortunately, the right-hander had a strong start to a crucial September.
He gave up two runs on 6.2 innings to help the Guardians take down the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2.
It was just his first quality start since July 21 when he faced the Baltimore Orioles.
He had a 6.15 ERA in his last eleven starts, which was the sixth-worst in the Majors during that span.
Saturday night’s win could have a huge impact on the postseason race, especially if they keep the foot on the gas and beat them again on Sunday.
With the win, the Guardians moved past the Rays in the American League wild-card race.
They’re trailing the Seattle Mariners by 2.5 games.
This team will stand a chance if Bibee continues to play like he played on Saturday night, and all the struggles from earlier in the season will be forgotten if he closes out the year on a high note.
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