Tanner Bibee Gets Emotional Following Guardians' Loss To Twins
There's an old saying that "there's no crying in baseball." Maybe I'm in the minority here, but that phrase should stay in the past.
It's rare we get to see professional athletes be emotional and show their human side. That's exactly what fans got when Tanner Bibee stood in front of his locker and had to answer the tough questions following the Cleveland Guardians' loss to the Minnesota Twins.
Bibee took the mound to start the game and, all things considered, finished with a respectable line. He threw 5.0 innings and only gave up four hits and two runs. Those runs came in the first inning and Bibee really settled down after this.
Cleveland was never able to recover from the Twins' early lead and they ended up dropping the series with one game left to play.
The rookie pitcher described the loss as a "hard day all around." Cleveland now sits 6.0 games behind Minnesota and it's going to take a miracle for them to reach the postseason.
Bibee said his goal for the start was "to try and be gritty."
Being gritty is all Bibee has done all season.
He started the season at Triple-A and made just three starts at that level before getting the call-up to make his Major League debut. Three! Every player works towards making their debut, but Bibee was immediately thrown into a situation where other starting pitchers were dropping with injuries and he had to pitch well in order to keep his team alive in the playoff hunt.
That's a lot of pressure to put on a rookie arm finding their way through the league. Still, Bibee has put up an ERA of 3.05 and a 1.23 WHIP while establishing himself as one of baseball's brightest young arms and should be in the Rookie of the Year conversation.
Not to mention this has been the longest and most stressful season of his young career. Bibee threw a total of 132.2 innings in the Minors last season and is currently at 129.2 (2,152 pitches) at the Major League level.
Jul 22, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Tanner Bibee (61) celebrates after striking out Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Nick Castellanos (not pictured) during the sixth inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
He hasn't skipped a start for rest or been optioned back to Triple-A to give his arm a pseudo-rest from the Majors. He's been there since being called up at the end of April.
At the end of the day, fans should show Bibee nothing but respect for what he's done this season. He's given this team and city his all and clearly truly cares about winning.
The only thing he showed everyone after Tuesday's loss was that he cares. There's not much more you can ask for as a teammate, coach, and fan.
