Starting pitching has been one of the biggest focuses this offseason with numerous high-level arms available and multiple teams in search of rotation help.
The Los Angeles Dodgers made the biggest splash to upgrade their rotation by trading for Tyler Glasnow and signing Yoshinobu Yamamoto. They are also closing in on a deal with James Paxton.
Among other free agent starters this offseason include Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, Aaron Nola, who re-signed with the Philadelphia Phillies, and Sonny Gray, who signed with the St. Louis Cardinals.
On the trade market, Dylan Cease, Shane Bieber, Corbin Burnes, Jesús Luzardo and Edward Cabrera have all been rumored to be available.
However, the sense from at least one American League executive is the Cleveland Guardians end up keeping Bieber, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:
“I think [the Guardians] keep Bieber,” an AL executive said.
Guardians general manager Mike Chernoff said the expectation was Bieber would be part of the team’s starting rotation during the 2024 season. However, Chernoff did not fully dismiss a potential Bieber trade.
The Dodgers reportedly checked in with the Guardians about Bieber while they were searching for starting pitching, but there are no indications any deal was ever close.
With Paxton seemingly in the mix now as well, the Dodgers would have been unlikely to trade for Bieber at this point, but other teams also expressed interest in the right-hander.
Bieber is coming off a season in which he went 6-6 with a 3.80 ERA, 3.87 FIP and 1.23 WHIP in just 21 starts. Included in that was a career-worst 7.5 strikeouts per nine innings.
The 28-year-old missed two months because of right elbow inflammation, but got through two starts at the end of September that suggested his health was back in order.
Bieber is under team control for a final year via salary arbitration. He is projected to receive a salary in the $12 million range this season.
Dylan Cease, Corbin Burnes join Shane Bieber as unlikely trade pieces
Like with Bieber, there is also an expectation that Burnes and Cease are unlikely to be traded as well. If that turns out to be the case, Glasnow may be the only ace traded this offseason, which would an unexpected outcome.
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