Tough Night For Tanner Bibee Against Tigers Defended By Stephen Vogt

Tanner Bibee has been the unfortunate victim of Cleveland's struggles within the starting rotation this season.

One outing, the 27-year-old pitches an absolute gem, but the lack of run support prevents the team from securing a victory. In the next, he's giving up multiple home runs and putting the team in a hole far too early.

On Tuesday, August 11, it was actually an odd middle ground of the two scenarios. He gave up just one run across the first four frames, with the Guardians' offense adding only one run of its own, before he fell apart in the fifth. Hard-hit balls came left and right that inning, allowing the Tigers to pull ahead 4-1.

Somehow, someway, Bibee was able to get through the inning, though, and save the bullpen a bit. He eventually clawed his way through the rest of the fifth, shut out the Tigers in the sixth and then attempted to eat up a bit of the seventh.

He would go on to allow two more runs in the seventh, one of which was earned, before the coaching staff pulled him. His final line for the day consisted of five hits, two walks and six runs allowed across 6.1 innings and 96 pitches thrown. He also tacked on four strikeouts along the way.

“Man, on the night we needed him to give us length, he did, and you know they made him pay there in the fifth, and strung some hits together," manager Stephen Vogt said. "So credit to them. But I thought Tanner threw way better than his line tonight. He was outstanding.”

The Guardians, with a bit of life late, were able to tack on one run in each of the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, but it wasn't enough to get back in the contest. Although it would have been nice to see the offense get going earlier, Bibee's bumps tossed the team off the road in the middle frames.

He certainly still has a long-term spot in this rotation, but he's arguably the third-best arm at the moment, with Gavin Williams and Parker Messick stealing the spotlight most of the year.

However, moving forward, he's going to have to build up a bit of consistency.

Across his 25 starts, he has allowed four or more runs seven times, while blanking opponents three times. He has also allowed one run or fewer in seven starts.

The tools are obviously there, especially when he is on, but it's the flipping and flopping between good and bad that has plagued his ability to be reliable start after start. If he can trend in the right direction as the year comes to a close, this questionable squad will have a much better shot at taking back the top spot in the American League Central.

While Bibee won't be back on the mound until Sunday, August 16, against the San Diego Padres, the Guardians will have to try to get back to winning ways.

On Wednesday, August 12, the Guardians will clash with the Tigers for the second outing of a three-game series from Comerica Park at 6:40 p.m. EST.

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