CLEVELAND — Shane Bieber’s first venture into free agency turned into a return trip.
The 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner agreed Friday to rejoin the Cleveland Guardians after making just two starts last season before undergoing Tommy John surgery, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
Bieber had been expected to leave the AL Central champions. But he’s coming back after agreeing to a one-year, $14 million contract that includes a $16 million player option for 2026, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal had not been announced.
Bieber’s deal will pay him $10 million in salary and includes a $4 million buyout.
The 29-year-old only pitched twice in 2024 before having the surgery on his elbow that bothered him during the previous campaign. Bieber felt discomfort in his start on opening day against the Oakland Athletics and again when he faced the Seattle Mariners his next outing.
Bieber didn’t allow a run in either start, and the club had been encouraged by his velocity and dominance (20 strikeouts). But the elbow became too painful and Bieber elected to have the ligament-replacement surgery.
If his recovery follows a normal timeline, Bieber should be back in Cleveland’s rotation within the first three months of next season.
The Guardians feared his loss would hurt them last season, but the club got off to a fast start under first-year manager Stephen Vogt and ran away with the division title. Cleveland eliminated Detroit in the AL Division Series before losing the ALCS to the New York Yankees in five games.
Bieber spent chunks of last season with the team and he received a huge ovation at Progressive Field when he was introduced before the postseason series.
The two-time All-Star has spent all seven of his big league seasons with Cleveland, which had contemplated trading him before his elbow issues in 2023 limited him to 21 starts.
During the shortened COVID-19 season in 2020, Bieber went 8-1 with a 1.63 ERA over 12 starts and 77 1/3 innings with 122 strikeouts. He led the majors in wins, ERA and strikeouts and finished fourth in AL MVP voting.
He was selected by Cleveland in the fourth round of the 2016 amateur draft out of UC Santa Barbara and made his major league debut two years later on his 23rd birthday.
Bieber has a career record of 62-32 with a 3.22 ERA over 136 outings spanning 134 starts and 843 innings. He has twice reached 200 innings, throwing a career-high 214 1/3 in 2019.
