CLEVELAND -- With how much the Guardians have been forced to lean on their bullpen over the past few days, and considering the grueling stretch of schedule they’re currently in, they desperately needed Tanner Bibee to step up on Tuesday.
Bibee understood the assignment. Following a three-hour, 10-minute rain delay, he delivered the longest outing by a Guardians starter this season in a 2-1 win over the Twins at Progressive Field. The right-hander allowed one run on five hits in seven innings while striking out five, while it was Kyle Manzardo who delivered the final blow, hitting a walk-off solo homer to defeat Minnesota in the ninth inning.
“Everything we needed and more,” manager Stephen Vogt said of Bibee’s outing. “And everything Tanner needed and more.”
The Guardians are in a stretch of playing 22 games in 23 days, which included a doubleheader against the Red Sox on Saturday. Over the past three games, their starters pitched two innings (Gavin Williams, Monday), 4 1/3 innings (Logan Allen, Sunday) and three innings (Doug Nikhazy, Game 2 of Saturday’s doubleheader).
It meant the bullpen has been carrying a heavy load, as evidenced by the roster shuffling the Guardians have been conducting to get fresh arms on the staff. Since Saturday, they’ve selected Kolby Allard from Triple-A Columbus; recalled Cody Bolton and optioned Joey Cantillo; recalled Cantillo, optioned Bolton and selected Vince Velasquez.
Paul Sewald (who leads the team in appearances) also landed on the 15-day IL on Tuesday with a right shoulder strain.
“We’re in the middle of 13 in a row, and it started with a doubleheader,” Vogt said. “It's going to be playing catch-up. But I feel like we're in a good place now. I think the last three games are definitely a one-off for our starting rotation. We're much better than that.”
Bibee delivered a quality start in his last outing, and he picked up where he left off on Tuesday -- but not before an extended wait. The game entered a delay shortly before 5:30 p.m. Around 8:05, the Guardians announced the expected first pitch was 8:50. The tarp returned to the field at 8:25, as a rain cell passed through.
At 8:45, the ultimate 9:20 first pitch was announced. For Bibee, it was key to find a “happy medium” of staying ready through all the delays, but also finding a way to unplug.
“If you stay locked in that long, you’re going to be pretty tired when you get out there,” he said.
So what did Bibee do during the delay?
“I watched everyone [in the clubhouse] play chess against each other,” he said, laughing.
It seemed to do the trick. Bibee retired the first 11 Twins hitters he faced, including three on strikeouts. Carlos Correa ended his budding perfect-game bid with two outs in the fourth inning, when he lined a double to center field.
“It was a great pitching performance from both sides,” Correa said. “Bibee’s case, he was just hitting spots, throwing a backdoor sinker, feeding the sweeper and slider off of that against righties.”
Bibee recorded three strikeouts with the sinker and one with the cutter. Ty France hit a solo homer off a four-seamer in the fifth, and Bibee then allowed singles to Brooks Lee and Harrison Bader. He struck out Christian Vázquez to end the threat.
Bibee allowed one other hit; France led off the seventh with a single to left field. Steven Kwan swiftly cut the ball off and got it back in to shortstop Gabriel Arias. France took a wide turn around first, and Arias fired a strike to Carlos Santana to throw him out.
The Guardians had a strong night defensively. Bo Naylor caught pinch-runner DaShawn Keirsey Jr. stealing for the second out in the ninth, and he caught a Jonah Bride foul popup against the netting for the third out, as closer Emmanuel Clase finished a scoreless frame.
“That’s our game,” Naylor said. “That’s what we’ve come to make part of our identity, is being solid on defense, consistent on defense and making the play when we need it.”
It all set up Manzardo, who drilled a 1-1 changeup from Louis Varland a Statcast-projected 363 feet over the right-field wall for a walk-off homer.
“Our curfew is midnight, with how young this team is,” Vogt joked, after the game ended at 11:37 p.m. “I’m glad we got it in.”