Bieber gives Cleveland staff a much-needed break

KANSAS CITY -- The Guardians needed a deep start, and Shane Bieber was just the man to give it to them.

With a starting rotation that has been strapped because of injuries and a bullpen worn down from picking up the extra innings, the top item on Cleveland’s wish list was an outing that could give their staff a rest. Bieber made that wish come true on Tuesday by working eight sterling innings in the Guardians’ 4-1 victory over the Royals on Tuesday night. He allowed just four hits in the gem, and left only the final three outs to the bullpen. Bieber needed only 99 pitches to get through eight, and his only glitch was an opposite-field solo homer by Salvador Perez in the fourth.

The Guardians, who increased their American League Central lead to 1 1/2 games, got all the offense they would need on José Ramírez’s two-run single off Kris Bubic in the third. James Karinchak came on to work the ninth, giving closer Emmanuel Clase a night off, and struck out two in a scoreless frame to earn the save.

Manager Terry Francona said he wanted to stay away from Clase in the middle game of the series, and that Bieber was a big factor in affording him that luxury.

“I didn’t think he had his best curveball, but with his fastball command and then his cutter. ... It was really effective,” Francona said. “And then some of the balls they squared up were kind of in the middle of the park. This is a big park, so that helps, too.”

Bieber reached a milestone with his 50th career win. All in all, it was a night for Bieber to savor for a variety of reasons.

The Guardians’ right-hander said back-to-back extra-inning games on Sunday and Monday had him thinking about how nice a long outing would be for the entire pitching staff. But that’s not something a starter can totally control, depending on how many pitches an opponent is willing to take.

“You have to let the game dictate itself,” Bieber said. “When you’re in-division, you can tell a team’s game plan pretty early. It seemed like [the Royals] wanted to be aggressive and not get too deep in counts. We just tried our best to be aggressive in the zone and finish batters when we could. So, we found ourselves in position to go deep in the ballgame.”

Even the homer by Perez came on a pitch in what Bieber would generally consider a safe spot.

“Fastball about six inches off the plate,” Bieber said. “He’s got to be the strongest man alive.”

From his vantage point directly behind Bieber in center field, Myles Straw could only marvel at the manner in which Bieber dispatched Kansas City hitters. Bieber finished his outing with seven strikeouts and just one walk.

“He’s one of the best I’ve ever seen,” said Straw, who contributed two hits and an RBI while playing his usual excellent defense. “He’s really fun to watch.”

Royals manager Mike Matheny commended Bieber after watching him take the game to the ninth with the economical 99 pitches.

“We chased his pitches early and put a lot of balls in play early in the count that ended up making him very efficient,” Matheny said.

With four weeks to go in the regular season, the Guardians feel good about what they can do with Bieber leading the rotation.

“He’s extremely intelligent about his craft,” Francona said. “I’ve thought that from the day he got here. He pitched, he really pitched.”