Cleveland Guardians ace Shane Bieber had gone to Driveline to optimize his stuff and regain his velocity in the 2023-24 offseason.
The results on his first two 2024 starts were magnificent, with 12 scoreless innings and 20 strikeouts.
Unfortunately, he blew out his elbow in one of the outings and had to undergo Tommy John surgery in April, missing the rest of 2024 and being already ruled out for a portion of 2025 as well.
The Guardians did manage to re-sign him in a one-year deal with a player option for 2026.
Many folks have talked about the second half as the most likely time of the year for Bieber to return and make an impact.
His manager, Stephen Vogt, provided an update this week, though, and says that a first-half return could be in play, according to Joe Noga of Cleveland.com.
“Manager Stephen Vogt told reporters this week that veteran pitchers such as Shane Bieber and Trevor Stephan, who underwent elbow surgeries early in 2024, could return in the first half of the season,” he wrote.
The skipper said that Bieber is excited to return and lead the Guards’ rotation.
“He’s excited,” Vogt said. “He’s ecstatic to be back and we’re equally ecstatic to have him back, and for him to be around us more this year. We’re really excited for that.”
For Cleveland, the fact he returns in May, June, or July matters, of course, but not as much as the state of his arm upon coming back.
They will probably take a July return as long as he looks as dominant as he did in those two April starts.
Still, there seems to be a chance we see Bieber back before the All-Star break.
He is the Guardians’ X-factor this year.
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