Shane Bieber's rehabilitation delayed due to elbow soreness

CLEVELAND: Cleveland Guardians pitcher Shane Bieber was scratched from his scheduled rehabilitation after experiencing soreness in his surgically repaired elbow, the team confirmed on Friday.

According to international media, Bieber experienced soreness during a bullpen session with Double-A Akron on Tuesday and will now consult with the surgeon, who performed his operation, to determine the next steps in his recovery.

Bieber underwent Tommy John surgery in April after making just two starts early in the 2024 season.

The former American League Cy Young Award winner was expected to miss at least half of the 2025 campaign but had recently started working his way back.

The incident took place just after Bieber’s promising rehab outing on May 31, his 30th birthday, for the Arizona Complex League Guardians.

He was impressive in the appearance and threw 2 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out five and allowing just one hit.

Bieber is also a two-time All-Star and 2020 Cy Young Award winner, adding a career 62-32 record with a 3.22 ERA in 136 appearances (134 starts) since debuting with Cleveland in 2018.

He signed a one-year, $10 million deal with the Guardians in December, which reportedly includes a $16 million player option for 2026 and a $4 million buyout.

Bieber's scratch from rehabilitation marked another injury blow to the Guardians, who recently lost fellow right-hander Ben Lively, who also underwent Tommy John surgery.

The Guardians are likely to provide more information on Bieber’s status within the next few days.