Bieber’s injury will put strain on Cleveland rotation
Through two-plus months of uncertainty about its pitching staff – from wildness and ineffectiveness from veterans and young arms to Zach Plesac suffering a thumb fracture while aggressively removing his jersey – Cleveland has relied on established starters Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale for stability in shifting winds.
But with Bieber’s placement on the injured list on Monday because of a right shoulder strain, Cleveland’s pitching situation has just about reached critical mass.
The team said the American League’s reigning Cy Young Award winner won’t throw for at least two weeks, an injury that will further test Cleveland’s pitching depth and calls into question whether the team could continue to be competitive, as it has for 21⁄2 months.
After allowing a season-high 10 hits — and throwing 107 pitches over five innings — in a loss to Seattle on Sunday that dropped his record to 7-4, Bieber underwent an MRI that showed he has a subscapularis muscle strain in his right shoulder.
Manager Terry Francona said Bieber will be re-evaluated after two weeks.
“We’re still obviously reaching out for more information and sending the images to different doctors and things like
that, trying to get the best information we can,” Francona said.
Bieber’s absence leaves Civale as the team’s lone option on the staff without much in the way of question marks, whether the issues are workload or effectiveness.
Somehow, Cal Quantrill, Eli Morgan, Triston Mckenzie, Sam Hentges and J.C. Mejia — with Logan Allen and Scott Moss possibly being options — need to
handle four of the five rotation spots for at least the next few weeks.
Cleveland has just begun a stretch of 30 games in 31 days, so it will be a while, until the All-star break in mid-july, when the pitching staff will have a chance to catch its collective breath. Bieber or Plesac, or both, might also possibly return in that time.
“We're going to have to be creative. Because I don't think by doing it the normal way, we'll be able to get through it,” Francona said. “We're setting out to win, but we certainly don't want to hurt anybody. It's going to be challenging. We know that.”
The loss of Bieber, 26, is a major blow to Cleveland, which has stayed in contention despite injuries to Plesac, slugger Franmil Reyes and Gold Glove catcher Roberto Pérez.
Bieber's velocity was lower on Sunday, but not overly alarming. After the game, he reached out to the medical staff for some “peace of mind because he thought he could work through it,” Francona said.
As of Monday, Bieber led the major leagues with 902⁄3 innings, just ahead of Zach Wheeler of Philadelphia (901⁄3) and Trevor Bauer of the Los Angeles Dodgers (882⁄3).
What's more, Bieber has been averaging an Mlb-high 105.3 pitches per outing, and that workload may have contributed to the shoulder issue. Bieber threw a season-high 121 pitches against Chicago on May 11 and has thrown at least 95 in 14 starts.
Francona said Bieber had not complained any of problems before Sunday, but that doesn't mean he wasn't having them.
“Every pitcher, if you ask them, nobody goes out there feeling like they're 18 anymore,” he said.
Coming off of a 60-game regular season in 2020 that was shortened by the coronavirus pandemic, pitchers' durability is on the mind of managers and general managers throughout baseball. Cleveland's 4-3 win over Baltimore on
Monday was its 63rd game of the season.
Francona said he's mindful of fatigue in all his players, and understands there may be times when players push themselves too hard.
“The really good players and pitchers are so good (because) they're able to sometimes finagle their way through,” Francona said. “Finagle is not a very good word, but (they) find a way to still be good when they're not 100%.
“When that starts to get in the way, I think then you maybe have to give a guy a break. I put Bieber in that class. He's one of the very best in our game and I think there's a reason for that.”
Information from the Akron Beacon Journal and the Associated Press was used in this story.