Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Shane Bieber dazzled on Sunday. The Indians pulled off the win by a final score of 6-3 over the Cincinnati Reds.
Roberto Perez hit a three-run home run. Meanwhile, Jose Ramirez launched his fourth home run of the year. While both of those were key moments in the game, the biggest storyline by far revolved around Shane Bieber.
Entering Sunday, Bieber was coming off a complete game, shutout against the Chicago White Sox last Wednesday. Furthermore, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner started the day with 35 strikeouts on the year. However, he would go onto build off that success in a significant way.
Shane Bieber Ties Strikeout Record
Although the right-hander had a stellar campaign in 2020, Bieber now belongs in the history books alongside Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. MLB Stats on Twitter had it all courtesy of information tweeted out by Sarah Langs of MLB.com and the Elias Sports Bureau.
Insane @ShaneBieber19 stats after 13 Ks today:
– Ties Nolan Ryan for the most Ks (48) through 4 appearances in a season since at least 1906. (h/t @SlangsOnSports)
-Becomes the 1st pitcher with 10+ Ks in his first 4 starts of a season since 1893. (via @EliasSports) pic.twitter.com/zRCXHMBF7d
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) April 18, 2021
The numbers that Bieber has record over his big league career are impressive. Although, the Indians likely wouldn’t have expected him to do what he did on Sunday. Adding to the impressiveness was this also from Sarah Langs.
Most games with more than 10 strikeouts, since start of 2020:
Shane Bieber: 8
Jacob deGrom: 5
Trevor Bauer: 4
Dinelson Lamet: 3
Lucas Giolito: 3— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 18, 2021
After winning the AL Cy Young Award last season, more people are familiar with Shane Bieber and the potential that he brings every time he toes the rubber. These numbers and accomplishments alone help to further back up the idea that he is one of the games best starting pitchers right now.
Shane Bieber in 2021
Following his start on Sunday, Shane Bieber now has a 2.45 ERA on the year over 29 and one-third innings of work. In addition, over that sample opposing batters are hitting .160 and he is averaging just north of 14 pitches per inning.
Among the rest of the American League, Bieber ranks 11th in ERA just behind fellow Indians pitcher, Aaron Civale. In addition, he has the tenth lowest Batting Average on Balls In Play (BABIP) (.255) among the rest of the American League. The aforementioned Civale leads the way in that category with a .146 value.
Although it’s still unofficial, Shane Bieber’s next scheduled start is slated for Saturday against the New York Yankees. The Cleveland Indians are off Monday followed by a two-game series against the Chicago White Sox before a four-game set against the Yankees starting Thursday.
Main Image:
Embed from Getty Images
Players Mentioned: Shane Bieber, Roberto Perez, Jose Ramirez, Nolan Ryan, Aaron Civale
