It might be hard to find a silver lining in Tanner Bibee’s 2026 season so far. The Cleveland Guardians’ Opening Day starting pitcher has failed to live up to that billing, with his most recent outing against the Atlanta Braves a potential reason for concern.
Bibee gave up a career-high eight earned runs and equaled his career worst with 11 hits allowed over just 4.2 innings in a 13-1 loss at Truist Park. It raised his ERA to 6.38 in four starts this season.
The right-hander did look to be turning the corner prior to this poor performance, and analyst Ken Carman revealed a reason not to be worried about Bibee, who has always struggled in the early going.
“Tanner Bibee seems to always start slow. Ain’t worried,” Carman wrote on X.
Tanner Bibee seems to always start slow. Ain't worried.
— Ken Carman (@KenCarman) April 13, 2026
That observation is somewhat supported by the stats, but not completely. It is true that in his four MLB seasons to date, Bibee does have a 4.28 ERA in March/April, which is higher than any other month except August, when his ERA is 4.50.
However, last season, his ERA spiked to 6.15 over July and August, before he had an excellent September, which helped the Guardians rally to win the AL Central. In 2024, Bibee got off to a strong start before posting a 4.64 ERA in August.
This season, Bibee could not take the mound for the sixth inning in that Opening Day start against the Seattle Mariners. After experiencing shoulder discomfort, he has been able to make every start since, and he allowed just two earned runs over 8.2 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Kansas City Royals, even though Cleveland lost each of those games.
Now, this outing has inflated his season numbers to 13 earned runs and 24 hits allowed in 18.1 innings pitched. In his past two starts, he has not gotten out of the fifth inning after throwing 87 and 93 pitches, respectively.
His next turn is scheduled for Friday against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field, where it will be worth watching if he can rebound or if this is the start of a potential decline.
NEXT: Tanner Bibee Hit Unfortunate Career Mark In Loss To Braves
