Analyst Calls Guardians Pitcher A ‘Tough Luck’ Starter

There are 64 qualified starting pitchers in MLB, and Cleveland Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee ranks 45th with a 4.09 ERA as of Monday morning. It’s not particularly close to the best, but it’s also far from a disaster.

Yet, his seven losses are tied for second-most among qualified starting pitchers in the league. His 1-7 record is the worst in baseball, a product of bad luck for the most part. This is why Bibee himself and those who understand how the modern game works don’t really pay attention to wins and losses. When it’s time to look for signs that can point to sustained success, the pitching record is the last thing you need to be looking at.

However, it’s impossible to ignore that Bibee has, for the most part, been extremely unlucky to this point. Yes, a few command lapses have contributed to the ERA and even to the win-loss record, but the lack of run support is really baffling.

“The unfortunate thing for [Tanner Bibee] is that the team doesn’t score when he’s out there pitching. He has the lowest run support for a starter. It might just be the American League now. He’s been that tough-luck loser. He’s been the guy who has consistently gone out there and given the Guardians innings and put them in a position to win. The unfortunate part is it’s a 2-1 game, or it’s a 3-0 game because the offense can’t come around for him,” Gene Winters said.

Tanner Bibee has allowed 3 runs or less in five of his last six turns. #GuardsBall@GoWinters needs some more run support for Tanner (and by proxy, his fantasy team).

Watch Bruce every week at https://t.co/dEpyh3RfR8! pic.twitter.com/g11Z6ZW7rX

— Bruce Drennan Show (@Bruce_Drennan) June 8, 2026

Bibee has only had two true stinkers so far this season: one on April 12, in which he conceded eight runs, and another one on May 25, when he gave up seven. Of course, he lost both, and deservedly so. A total of 11 of his remaining 12 outings, however, have yielded three runs or fewer, and there is a four-run game on May 4 to round out his game log.

He certainly hasn’t pitched so badly, at least not to deserve a 1-7 record. That lone win was achieved in his most recent start last week, so he was 0-7 just a few days ago. It has to be one of the most stunning runs of bad luck a pitcher has recently experienced.

Luck in baseball, however, tends to even out over the course of a long season, so don’t be surprised if Bibee starts getting that individual win-loss record closer to .500 with each passing week.