CLEVELAND (AP) 鈥� For one inning, it appeared as if all the breaks were going the way of Cleveland starting pitcher Tanner Bibee on Sunday.
Despite giving up a leadoff homer for the second straight game, the right-hander left with a lead for the first time in 13 starts this season and finally got run support as the Guardians led the Boston Red Sox 4-3 going into the seventh inning.
Instead, Bibee had a front row seat as the bullpen had one of its worst innings of the year as Boston rallied for a 9-4 win.
That put Bibee at the top of a couple of lists no starting pitcher wants to join.
in the seventh inning en route made Bibee the 12th opening day starter since 1976 to make at least 10 starts and not earn a win before June, according to Sportradar.
He has the most starts without a win before June and is the fourth with at least 12. The others were Colorado鈥檚 Kyle Freeland (2025), Miami鈥檚 Jos茅 Ure帽a (2018) and Atlanta鈥檚 Carl Morton (1976).
Bibee is also the first pitcher in Cleveland鈥檚 125-year franchise history to go winless in his first 13 starts.
鈥淚鈥檝e said this in the past. I don鈥檛 have any control over it. All I can do is go out there, try to throw up some zeros and whatever happens, happens,鈥� said Bibee, who is 0-7.
Bibee’s seven losses are tied for the second most among among the 12 opening day starters. His 4.57 is the fourth lowest.
鈥淲ins and losses don鈥檛 matter for starting pitchers. It鈥檚 not a stat that means anything. So I know he鈥檚 not worried about it and we鈥檙e definitely not worried about it,鈥� catcher Austin Hedges said.
Bibee bounced back after Jarren Duran connected on the fifth pitch of the game and drove it into the right-field stands, the fourth time he gave up a leadoff homer this season. He allowed only one hit in the second through fourth innings before the Red Sox loaded the bases with one out in the fifth. Mickey Gasper tied it at 2-all with a sacrifice fly to drive in Marcelo Mayer and Wilyer Abreu鈥檚 RBI single gave Boston a 3-2 lead.
However, the Guardians rallied.
Cleveland scored twice in the bottom of the fifth on Jos茅 Ram铆rez’s RBI double after Boston left fielder Masataka Yoshida lost track of the fly ball in the sun. Chase DeLauter鈥檚 single drove in Ram铆rez. They loaded the bases with two outs when Stuart Fairchild struck out and unsuccessfully challenged the called third strike.
That left the Guardians without a challenge for the rest of the game, which would come back to haunt them.
Bibee retired the Red Sox in order in the sixth. He threw 90 pitches, including 62 strikes, and allowed three runs and six hits with five strikeouts and one walk.
The Guardians bullpen couldn鈥檛 hold the lead. Tim Herrin seemed poised to escape a bases-loaded jam with a fastball on the outer corner to Abreu on a full count, but home plate umpire Austin Jones called it a ball, allowing Connor Wong to score and tie it at 4-all.
The inning unraveled as Boston had three straight hits and added five more runs to take control of the game.
Cleveland has the third-worst challenge rate on ABS at 44.4% (59 for 133). The league average is 52.6%.
鈥淚 mean, it鈥檚 frustrating, but that鈥檚 on us. We shouldn鈥檛 have lost our challenges. It鈥檚 what they鈥檙e there for, and we鈥檝e got to take accountability and be better at it,鈥� Hedges said.
Bibee was a fifth-round pick by Cleveland in the 2021 amateur draft. He went 22-12 with a 3.25 ERA in his first two seasons in the majors and was second in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. He was also the third Cleveland pitcher since 2000 with at least 10 wins in each of his first two seasons in the big leagues. Hall of Famer CC Sabathia (2001-02) and Shane Bieber (2018-19) are the others.
However, Bibee is 12-18 with a 4.33 ERA in 44 starts since signing a five-year, $48 million contract during spring training last year.
鈥淲e haven鈥檛 scored a lot of runs when Tanner鈥檚 been on the mound, even in some of the starts in which he鈥檚 pitched exceptionally well,鈥� general manager Chris Antonetti said. 鈥淚 think as we look forward, we鈥檒l start to see more of those outings in which he鈥檚 pitching more effectively than maybe some of those other hiccup.鈥�
Bibee remains confident he can turn his season around. Manager Stephen Vogt said Bibee鈥檚 changeup showed improvement after he allowed seven runs in three innings on Monday against Washington.
He has six quality starts this season with Sunday’s being the fourth in his past five games.
鈥淵ou want to win games, but I feel like it鈥檚 important to know pitching; you鈥檙e playing a completely different sport than the other nine people in the field. So it鈥檚 just figuring out what the kind of self-evaluation of it,鈥� Bibee said.
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