Shane Bieber


Shane Robert Bieber is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball. Bieber made his MLB debut with Cleveland in 2018, and was named an All-Star in 2019.

Early life

Bieber attended Laguna Hills High School in Laguna Hills, California. Bieber's pitch speed reached the mid-80s as a junior and his command was very strong. He was recruited to play college baseball at University of California, Santa Barbara as a walk-on and did not receive much attention from many other programs. As a senior in 2013, he pitched to an 8–4 record with a 1.40 ERA.
After graduating, he enrolled at Santa Barbara where he played for the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos baseball team as a walk-on. He earned a scholarship by his sophomore year. In 2015, he played collegiate summer baseball in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox. In 2016, his junior year, he went 12–4 with a 2.74 ERA in 18 starts. He was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the fourth round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft.

Professional career

Bieber signed and made his professional debut with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, where spent the whole season, posting a 0.38 ERA in 24 innings. He spent 2017 with the Lake County Captains, Lynchburg Hillcats, and Akron RubberDucks, pitching to a combined 10–5 record with a 2.86 ERA in 28 starts between the three teams.
On May 25, 2018, Bieber pitched a rain-shortened seven-inning no-hitter for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers against the Gwinnett Stripers. The Indians purchased Bieber's contract on May 31, 2018, and added him to their active roster. He made his major league debut that evening, starting against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. He pitched 5.2 innings, giving up four runs and eight hits while walking one and striking out six as the Indians defeated Minnesota 9–8. Bieber finished his rookie season with an 11–5 record, a 4.55 ERA, and 118 strikeouts in 20 appearances.
Owning a 7–3 record with a 3.54 ERA over 18 games, Bieber was named to the 2019 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. He struck out the side on 19 pitches in the fifth inning as the American League won, 4–3. He received the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award. Bieber finished the season with a 15–8 record in 34 games. In innings, he struck out 259.
On July 24, 2020, Bieber struck out 14 Kansas City Royals batters in six innings, setting a new Indians record for most strikeouts by a starting pitcher on Opening Day. In his next start on July 30 against the Minnesota Twins, he struck out 13 batters in eight innings, tying Karl Spooner for the most strikeouts by a pitcher in their first two starts in a season.