CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
GUARDS CAP HOMESTAND WITH VICTORY
The Guardians capped a 6-game homestand with a 4-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday afternoon at Progressive Field behind another exceptional MLB debut by a Cleveland starter…marked the club’s third consecutive win in a series finale (6-2 in finales overall).
2021 5th-round selection TANNER BIBEE joined 2020 2ndround selection LOGAN ALLEN (Sunday vs. Miami) as the second Guardians starter in four days to win his MLB debut…Bibee fanned 8 and surrendered just a single tally to the Rockies (5.2IP, 6H, 1R-ER, 0BB, 8SO, HB, 91 pitches), which came following a lead-off double in the 6th by Jurickson Profar, who then scored on a Kris Bryant RBI single…beginning with the first out of the 2nd inning, Bibee recorded 5 consecutive strikeouts, becoming the first Cleveland hurler in the Live Ball Era (since 1920) to pull the trick in an MLB debut… Cleveland’s ‘pen followed with 3.1 lockdown innings of relief, capped by EMMANUEL CLASE’s 8th save. » JOSH NAYLOR gave the Guards an early lift with his 2-run HR (3) off Germán Márquez in the 1st…back-to-back doubles in the 4th by ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ & OSCAR GONZALEZ plated the club’s third run, while Giménez also scored Cleveland’s final insurance tally in the 8th after getting hit by a pitch to start the frame.
The Clevelanders have dropped 7 of their last 10 following a 9-6 start to the season…club is 8-5 on the road…Guardians (12-13) have lost 7 of last 10 overall; still hold sole possession of 2nd place in AL Central standings, 2.5 games behind Minnesota (15-11).
SHIPPIN’ UP TO BOSTON
Cleveland is in Boston for a 3-game set from Friday to Sunday before heading to the Bronx Monday thru Wednesday to cap a 6-game AL East road trip…the Guardians will host the Red Sox for another trio of games from June 6-8 to cap the season series.
Last season, Boston swept Cleveland in three straight games at Progressive Field from June 24-26 (3-6, 2-4, 3-8)…the Red Sox and Guardians then split a four-game set at Fenway Park from July 25-28, giving the Red Sox a 5-2 season series win (1-3, 8-3, 7-6, 2-4)…Cleveland’s last season series win against the Bostonians came in 2018 when they went 4-3…the Guards have a 4-11 record in their last 15 regular season games against the Red Sox…in regular season contests, Cleveland holds a 492-544 record when playing at Boston and holds a 1,064-1,004 overall record against the franchise since 1901.
From 2004-11, Guardians manager TERRY FRANCONA served as manager for the Red Sox…in 8 seasons with Boston, Francona won two World Series (2004, 2007) and one AL East title (2007), while tallying a 744-552 (.574) overall record…amid his 11th season in Cleveland, Francona has made one World Series appearance (2016) and has won four AL Central titles (2016-18, 2022), while tallying an 857-684 (.556) overall record…the 64-year-old leader has a 29-33 record against Boston since taking over the helm in Cleveland.
GETTING WARMED UP
With a win over Colorado on Wednesday, Cleveland improved to 12-13 through the club’s first 25 contests…during the TERRY FRANCONA Era (since 2013) the Guardians have had a winning record only 5 times through 25 games, going 13-12 or better from 2016-20…the club has been 12-13 in 2013 and 2021-23, 11-14 in 2014, and 9-16 in 2015. Since 2013, Cleveland’s offense has struggled in the season’s opening month, posting its lowest totals in runs per game (4.19), average (.238), OBP (.311), SLG (.391) and home runs (247)… with 3 games left in the month, the offense is averaging 3.74 runs per game with a slash line of .230/.313/.353 and 13 home runs… if the month were to end today, it would be the lowest runs per game, slugging percentage and home run total in any April under Francona…looking forward, the Guardians have posted their 2ndbest monthly runs per game (4.79), slugging percentage (.420) and home run (288) totals in May.
MONTHLY OFFENSIVE SPLITS, SINCE 2013
MONTH R/GM AVG OBP SLG R HR
April 4.19 .238 .311 .391 985 247
May 4.79 .254 .329 .420 1212 288
June 4.59 .256 .320 .418 1096 268
July 4.81 .264 .332 .429 1134 273
August 4.43 .252 .321 .409 1240 316
September 4.60 .255 .326 .412 1265 286
DYNAMIC DEBUT DUO
During the last homestand, both LHP LOGAN ALLEN and RHP TANNER BIBEE made their MLB debuts with starts for Cleveland… Allen (W, 6.0IP, 5H, 1R/ER, 1BB, 8SO) started on April 23 against Miami, and Bibee (W, 5.2IP, 6H, 1R/ER, 0BB, 8SO) started on April 26 against Colorado…the pair became the 11th and 12th different hurlers to win a game for the Guardians this season.
The lefty and righty are the first duo from the same team to tally 8-or-more strikeouts, one-or-zero runs allowed and one-or-zero walks allowed in their debuts in a single MLB season…Allen and Bibee also became the 6th and 7th pitchers in Cleveland history to record 8+ strikeouts in their MLB debut…Bibee is the second pitcher in franchise history to tally 8+ strikeouts without allowing a walk, the other being Floyd Weaver (W, 5.0IP, 3H, 1R/ER, 0BB, 8SO) on September 30, 1962, against Los Angeles-AL in Game 2 of a doubleheader…since 2020, only four pitchers have recorded MLB debuts of 8+ strikeouts, one-or-zero runs allowed and one-or-zero walks, three of which come from Cleveland in Allen, Bibee, and TRISTON McKENZIE (6.0IP, 2H, 1R/ER, 1BB, 10SO) on August 22, 2020, vs. Detroit.
TRIPLE-A TRIUMPHS
SAM HENTGES (left shoulder inflammation) made his 4th rehab appearance last night (2 with AA Akron, 2 with AAA Columbus)…the left-hander threw a scoreless 7th inning with a strikeout, throwing 12 pitches (9 for strikes)…in his four rehab appearances, Hentges has 4.0IP, 4H, 0R/ER, 1BB and 4SO.
ZACK COLLINS is off to a hot start in April, leading the entire Guardians minor league system in batting average (.380), home runs (6), RBI (23), hits (35), extra-base hits (13) and total bases (60)…his .380 batting average, 35 hits, and 23 RBI (T1st) lead all International League players.
GAVIN WILLIAMS (W, 5.1IP, 3H, 0R/ER, 3BB, 6SO) made his AAA Columbus debut last night, earning the win as part of a combined 3-hit shutout…Williams entered the season as Cleveland’s consensus #2 prospect & #20 MLB prospect according to Baseball America…last season, he led Cleveland’s player development system with a 1.96 ERA with High-A Lake County and AA Akron.
TONIGHT’S STARTER – 57 SHANE BIEBER RHP
BIEBER ON THE ROAD
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 0-0 3.00 3 3 18.0 18 6 6 2 14
Career 34-11 2.79 65 64 416.2 338 138 129 84 490
BIEBER’S MLB CAREER
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 1-1 3.23 5 5 30.2 27 11 11 9 22
Career 55-27 3.18 118 116 733.2 645 278 259 162 853
TONIGHT’S START
The 2020 Cy Young winner is scheduled to make his sixth start of the season, fourth on the road, in the series opener at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox on Friday night…the 27-year-old righthander is making his sixth career start against Boston…is making this appearance on extended 5 day’s rest after his last outing on Saturday vs. Miami; is 21-9 with a 2.60 ERA (81ER/280.0IP) in his career on 5 days rest…Cleveland has a 76-40 record in Bieber’s 116 career starts but is 1-4 in 2023.
LAST START
He suffered the loss in his first career start against the Marlins on Saturday, snapping a streak of 4 straight quality starts to begin the 2023 season, allowing 3R/ER over 5.2 innings in a 6-1 loss… after facing the minimum number of hitters in the 1st, a Yuli Gurriel RBI-single and a fielding error put Cleveland in a 2-0 deficit in the 2nd frame…Bieber retired 9 of the next 11 hitters he faced before allowing a Bryan De La Cruz solo home run…the four walks issued by Bieber marked the 7th start of his career with 4 free passes issued, last occurring on May 27, 2021, at Detroit…he has recorded 4-or-less strikeouts in each of his last three starts, tying the longest streak of his career (9/24/2021-4/7/2022).
CAREER VS. BOSTON
This will mark Bieber’s fifth career start against the Red Sox…in 4 starts against Boston, he is 2-2 with a 5.18 ERA (14ER/24.1IP)… suffered the loss, despite allowing 3R/ER in 7.0 innings in his previous start versus Boston in 4-2 loss at Progressive Field on June 25 of last season…one of his 2 career relief appearances has come against the Red Sox, allowing 6R/ER over 4.2 innings in a 7-5 defeat on September 21, 2018 at Progressive Field…owns a 3.82 ERA (64ER/150.2IP) and 12-8 record in 24 appearances (23 starts) versus the AL East, his highest ERA against any AL division. ROAD RENEGADE
Bieber concluded his 2022 season with an 8-3 mark in road starts, bumping his career record on the road to 34-11 (.756)…he is 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA (6ER/18.0IP) through 3 road 2023 starts…since July 29 of last season, Bieber is 6-0 with a 1.85 ERA (14ER/68.0IP) with 64 strikeouts and 7 walks across 10 starts on the road.
Among AL pitchers in 2022 road starts, Bieber led the way in innings pitched (119.0) and tied for the lead in strikeouts (121) with NYY’s Gerrit Cole…he also ranked top-10 among AL pitchers in SO/ BB ratio (4th, 5.50), ERA (5th, 2.65), baserunners allowed-per-9.0IP (6th, 9.68), opponent on-base percentage (7th, .271) and WHIP (9th, 1.07)…among pitcher’s with 50-or-more road starts, Bieber’s 2.79 road ERA is the 2nd-lowest road ERA in MLB since 2018 behind NYM’s Max Scherzer (2.75).
ROAD ERA LEADERS, SINCE 2018
NAME TEAM ERA IP ER SO
Max Scherzer 3 teams 2.75 385.2 118 500
Shane Bieber CLE 2.79 416.2 129 490
Clayton Kershaw LAD 2.93 335.1 109 329
Gerrit Cole HOU/NYY 3.09 451.0 155 602
Marcus Stroman 3 Teams 3.13 318.2 111 259
APRIL’S ACE
Since his AL Cy Young winning season in 2020, Bieber is 1st in batters faced (364), 1st in pitches per game (97.0), T1st in innings pitched (96.1) with NYY’s Gerrit Cole, and 2nd in strikeouts (116) behind Cole (122) in April…he also ranks top 10 in strikeouts-per-9- innings (10.84, 7th), opponent batting average (.201, 7th) and ERA (2.99, 10th) in April contests since 2020.
BREAKING BALL BREAKDOWN
Bieber’s slider has been used on 29.2% of pitches this year, holding hitters to a .225 average (9-for-40) through 5 starts…12 of his 22 strikeouts are via the slider…64% (87/136) of his sliders are thrown to right-hand hitters, down from 85% (718/849) last year.
Bieber’s curveball has held batters to a .158 average (3-for-19) this season…83% (39/47) of his curveballs are thrown to left-handed hitters, nearly matching his 85% (439/514) mark last season.
BIEBER’S 2023 MLB DAY-BY-DAY
Date Opp. Dec. ERA IP H R ER HR BB-I SO P/S
3/30 at SEA — 0.00 6.0 6 0 0 0 0-0 3 87/57
4/4 at OAK — 2.25 6.0 3 3 3 0 1-0 7 89/65
4/10 vs. NYY W 2.37 7.0 5 2 2 0 3-0 4 99/56
4/16 at WAS — 2.88 6.0 9 3 3 1 1-0 4 87/62
4/22 vs. MIA L 3.23 5.2 4 3 3 1 4-0 4 103/65
March/April Totals 1-1 3.23 30.2 27 11 11 2 8-0 22
2023 Totals 1-1 3.23 30.2 27 11 11 2 8-0 22
BOSTON RED SOX NOTES:
STATE OF THE SOX: The Red Sox are 8-5 in their last 13 games, after beginning the season 5-8. The Sox have won 3 of their last 4 series (3-1 vs. LAA, 2-1 vs. MIN, 2-1 at MIL, 1-2 at BAL)…Each of those 3 series wins were against a team that entered Game 1 with at least a share of 1st place (LAA, MIN, MIL). The Sox were off yesterday, following a season-long stretch of 19 consecutive days with a game (10-9 record)…They are not scheduled to play on more than 10 consecutive days again until 8/15-30 (16 G).
RED SOX THROUGH 26 GAMES
Stat 2022 2023
W-L 10-16 13-13
Runs scored 90 146
Home runs 16 34
AVG .229 .252
OPS .626 .758
Walks 57 92
HOME COOKING: The Red Sox are 5-2 over their last 7 home games, winning each of their last 2 home series (3-1 vs. LAA, 2-1 vs. MIN). The Sox have scored 75 runs in their 13 home games… Their 5.7 runs/game at home ranks 4th in MLB. In home games, the Sox rank among AL leaders in
AVG (5th, .266), OBP (4th, .342), SLG (4th, .535), and OPS (5th, .777).
SOX & GUARDIANS: The Red Sox went 5-2 against the Guardians last season, and are 9-4 vs. CLE since the beginning of 2021. Alex Cora is 1 of 7 current MLB managers to have played for Terry Francona during his 8-year stint as manager of the Red Sox from 2004-11:
Alex Cora (2005-08), Rocco Baldelli (2009), Kevin Cash (2010),
Gabe Kapler (2003-06), Mark Kotsay (2008-09),
Dave Roberts (2004), and David Ross (2008).
SLUGGING SOX: The Red Sox rank 3rd in MLB in runs scored (146)…In their last 13 games (beginning 4/14), they have averaged 5.7 runs per game with a .785 OPS. This is only the 9th time the Sox have hit at least 34 HR in their first 26 games (most recent: 2010, 2002). The Sox have homered in each of their last 8 games (13 HR total), their longest streak since May 2022 (8 straight from 5/16-24). The Red Sox have hit 3 grand slams, tied with the Dodgers for most in MLB .
RED SOX OFFENSIVE RANKINGS
Stat AL Rank
146 R 3rd
34 HR T-3rd
86 XBH 2nd
20.8 SO% 2nd
Stat AL Rank
.252 AVG 6th
.329 OBP 6th
.429 SLG 3rd
.758 OPS 4th
TEAM EFFORT: Four different players have recorded a go-ahead RBI in the 8th inning or later for the Red Sox: Adam Duvall (4/1 vs. BAL), Yu Chang (4/15 vs. LAA), Alex Verdugo (4/18 vs. MIN), and Masataka Yoshida (4/23 at MIL). The Sox have 10 players with at least 8 RBI, 2nd most in MLB behind TB (11). The Red Sox’ 8th and 9th spots in the lineup have produced 31 RBI, 4th most in MLB.
RED SOX INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES OF LATE
Player Span (Start Date) Stats
Justin Turner Last 16 G (4/11) .328 AVG, .918 OPS
Kiké Hernández Last 15 G (4/12) .328 AVG, 6 2B, 13 R
Jarren Duran Last 10 G (4/17) .400 AVG, 1.054 OPS, 10 RBI
Triston Casas Last 9 G (4/17) .395 OBP, 11 BB, 9 R
Masataka Yoshida Last 7 G (4/20) .464 AVG, 3 HR, 10 RBI
PINCH ME: The Red Sox have had 30 pinch-hit plate appearances, most in MLB (9-for-27, 1 BB, 2 CI)…They lead the majors in pinch hits (9) and rank 5th in AVG (.333).
ANGELS IN THE OUTFIELD: The Red Sox’ outfielders lead MLB in AVG (.303), hits (92), XBH (36), and RBI (62). The Sox’ outfielders rank 2nd in MLB in SLG (.513) and OPS (.886), and rank T-5th in HR (13).
LEADING OFF: Alex Verdugo ranks in the AL’s top 10 in AVG (8th, .311), hits (T-3rd, 32), and runs (T-3rd, 20)…He leads qualified AL right fielders in outs above average (2). Verdugo ranks in MLB’s 90th percentile or better in expected AVG (96th), strikeout % (92nd), whiff percentage (97th), outs above average (92nd), and arm strength (97th).
MACHO MAN: Over his current 7-game hitting streak, Masataka Yoshida has posted a 1.305 OPS (13-for-28, 5 R, 2B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 2 BB, SF). Yoshida has hit 3 HR in his last 4 games, after hitting 2 HR in his previous 16 games. Yoshida has batted from the 4th spot in the lineup in 18 of his first 20 career games. Since 1950, the only other players hit 4th in as many as 18 of their first 20 career games were Darick Hall (18 in 2022 with PHI), Pete Incaviglia (19 in 1986 with TEX), and Chris Chambliss (18 in 1971 with CLE).
FOREVER AND DEVERS: Rafael Devers is tied for the MLB lead in total bases (58) and XBH (16)…He also leads the AL in HR (9) and ranks T-3rd in RBI (24).
DEVERS’ AMERICAN LEAGUE RANKINGS
Stat AL
9 HR ………………………..1st
24 RBI…………………… T-3rd
18 R……………………… T-9th
Stat AL
16 XBH…………. T-1st in MLB
58 total bases .. T-1st in MLB
.574 SLG …………………….. 5th
WHAT A RELIEF: The Red Sox rank 13th in MLB with a 3.58 bullpen ERA, after ranking 26th in 2022 (4.59). In their last 13 games, Sox relievers have posted a 3.12 ERA (17 ER/49.0 IP) with 44 SO and 14 BB.
RED SOX PITCHERS WITH A RELIEF ERA OF 2.00 OR LOWER
Pitcher Relief ERA IP ER
Kenley Jansen 0.00 7.2 0
Brennan Bernardino 0.00 3.0 0
Kutter Crawford 0.79 11.1 1
Josh Winckowski 1.47 18.1 3
CLOSING TIME: The Red Sox have a 2.40 ERA in the 8th and 9th innings (12 ER/45.0 IP)…The Sox have out-scored opponents in those innings, 32-14. Boston’s 1.38 ERA in the 8th inning (4 ER/26.0 IP) is tied with TB for the best in MLB. The Sox are 9-0 when leading after 6 innings. The Red Sox are the only team in MLB without a blown save this season.
MOST SAVES IN MLB HISTORY
Rk. Pitcher SV
- Mariano Rivera …..652
- Trevor Hoffman …..601
- Lee Smith …………..478
- Francisco Rodriguez..437
Rk. Pitcher SV - John Franco………..424
- Billy Wagner……….422
T7. Kenley Jansen .. 397
Craig Kimbrel ……..397
COMEBACK KIDS: The Red Sox have come from behind in 9 of their 13 wins…They trailed by multiple runs in 5 of those 9 wins, including by 4 runs on 4/15 vs. LAA and by 6 runs on 4/1 vs. BAL. The Sox have won 4 games in which they trailed after 7 innings, already matching their 2023 total (4-64).
CLOSE SHAVES: 18 of the Sox’ 26 games have been decided by 3 runs or fewer (9-9)…The only teams with more such games are CLE (20), and LAA (19). The Sox have played 9 games decided by 1 run this season (3-6)…The only other teams more 1-run losses are CIN, CLE, and SEA (7 each).
TONIGHT’S STARTER: 37 NICK PIVETTA – RHP
Earned his 1st win of the season on 4/21 at MIL, allowing 3 runs in 5.2 IP (7 H, BB, 7 SO, HR). Has tossed 5.0+ innings in 3 of his 4 starts this season. Has allowed 3 ER or fewer in 8 of his last 11 starts, beginning 9/2/22. 10 of his 23 strikeouts this season have ended with a curveball, with opponents batting .200 in at-bats ending with the pitch (5-for-25, HR). The Red Sox have won both of his starts against the Guardians: 6/24/22 (7.0 IP, 2 R) and 7/25/22 (5.2 IP, 1 R). Is 1 of only 14 pitchers to make at least 67 starts since the beginning of 2021.
