Shane Bieber received plenty of help from the Tribe’s offense on Wednesday night, but in reality, the rookie starter really didn’t need all that much from the bats to pick up his 11th victory on the season.
In what was his final start of the regular season, and potentially his final start of 2018, the right-hander stifled the White Sox en route to a 10-2 victory in the series finale between the clubs at Guaranteed Rate Field. Bieber held the Sox hitless through 4 2/3 innings before allowing a two-out single to Yoan Moncada. Bieber only allowed two hits while striking out nine and walking two in six innings of work to cap off his great rookie season.
While the likelihood of Bieber being a starting pitcher in the postseason is slim, there is a chance that he has done enough this season to earn a spot on the Tribe’s American League Division Series roster as a bullpen arm. After his strong performance on Wednesday, Bieber finishes his rookie season with a record of 11-5, a 4.55 ERA, 118 strikeouts and only 23 walks in 114 2/3 innings over 20 games (19 starts).
Whether we see more of Bieber in October or not, all things considered, this kid has a very, very bright future. Indians fans have a lot to be excited about with Bieber in the starting five for years to come.
As previously mentioned, the Tribe’s offense had a huge night, racking up 16 hits against its division rival. Edwin Encarnacion led the way with three hits and four RBIs in the game, giving him a team-high 105 RBIs on the season. Encarnacion followed up an RBI single in the third inning with a three-run homer — No. 32 on the season — to left in the fourth inning.
Francisco Lindor started the game off with a home run to left, marking his 37th round tripper of the season and his MLB-leading ninth leadoff homer.
Jason Kipnis and Roberto Perez both had strong nights at the plate as well, as both players collected two hits and two RBIs. Michael Brantley also pick up an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
The offensive outburst for the Tribe came against a bevy of relievers from Chicago, who decided to go with a bullpen-day approach.
After Cody Allen and Brad Hand pitched scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth, respectively, the White Sox finally crossed the plate in the ninth with left-hander Oliver Perez on the mound. Perez gave up an RBI single to Kevan Smith and was later replaced by right-hander Adam Cimber, who allowed an RBI single to Adam Engel before recording a fly out to end the game.
It’s also worth mentioning that Erik Gonzalez, who came into the game as a defensive substitution for Lindor in the sixth, was hit in the helmet by a pitch from White Sox reliever Rob Scahill in the eighth inning. Gonzalez was down for some time while a visibly shaken Scahill looked on in disbelief. Gonzalez was later helped off the field by Cleveland trainers, removed from the game and was likely taken to the clubhouse to be tested for a concussion.
With the win, the Indians improved to 89-69 and are now one win away from reaching 90 wins for the third consecutive season. The White Sox fall to 62-96, good enough for fourth in the AL Central.
The Indians will open their final series of the regular season on Thursday night, as right-hander Josh Tomlin (2-5, 6.44 ERA) will take the ball in the first game of a four-game set against the last-place Royals at 8: 15 p.m. ET at Kauffman Stadium.