Guardians Pitcher Shines In Possibly Last Start With Organization

The Cleveland Guardians’ trade deadline plans have taken a dramatic turn over the last day.

The organization looked like they could be buyers, or soft sellers at the very least, before July 31, but the recent Emmanuel Clase news makes the Guardians much more likely to be full-blown sellers than anything.

One player who pitched in a game on Tuesday, who could end up being on the move in the next two days, is Shane Bieber.

Shane Bieber throws a pitch — Guardians starting pitcher Shane Bieber makes a rehab start for the Akron RubberDucks, Tuesday, July 29, at Canal Park. | Lisa Scalfaro / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Bieber hasn’t pitched in a big league game since April 2024 and has been recovering from Tommy John surgery since then.

However, he’s getting closer to making a return, and Bieber took the next step in his recovery with his third rehab start on Tuesday afternoon, this time with the Akron RubberDucks (Double-A).

The former Cy Young winner pitched 4.0 innings, gave up three hits, struck out seven batters, and issued zero walks. Bieber’s command looked solid too, with 67 percent of his pitches registering for strikes.

Shane Bieber rehab update⬇️⬇️⬇️

4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 0 BB, 7 SO @AkronRubberDuck 🦆 pic.twitter.com/3J1Sovth8X
— GuardsInsider (@GuardsInsider) July 29, 2025

With the Guardians facing a tall task to grab one of the three wild-card spots, and Bieber having a player option heading into next season, there are reports that Cleveland could look to move the starting pitcher.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic recently reported that the Clase situation "likely increased the possibility of the team trading right-hander Shane Bieber."

Even though Bieber’s name has been in trade rumors over the last few weeks, it’s not the first time there have been questions about whether the 30-year-old will be on the move at the deadline.

At this point in his career, Bieber isn’t thinking too hard about what’s out of his control.

“I feel like with my situation right now, it's pretty easy to focus on what's most important, and that's game action and continuing to build and recover. It's pretty easy to keep perspective right now. So I'm focused on getting back and helping the team and doing that as quickly as possible.”

If this truly was Bieber’s last start with a team within the Guardians organization, it’s nice to see him leave on a high note.

He’s on the precipice of returning from a significant injury and has left it all on the line for this team on multiple occasions.

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