The Cleveland Indians have Shane Bieber on the mound Friday night.
That means it is once again a must-watch game for fans all around MLB.
Bieber is set to take on a Chicago White Sox lineup he has already faced once this season.
That just so happened to be the best start of the season as he went a full nine innings with no earned runs and 11 strikeouts.
The offense finally woke up late to give Bieber and the team the win in extra innings.
Bieber will now be hoping he gets a little more support as he squares off against Dallas Keuchel.
Another storyline in this one will be the Indians ace looking to recapture the MLB lead for strikeouts in 2021.
Biebs on the bump in the Windy City.#OurCLE pic.twitter.com/HPvq89T4sJ
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) April 30, 2021
Bieber Knocked Out of First Place
Bieber is now in a tight race with New York Mets ace and living pitching legend Jacob deGrom.
deGrom has 59 strikeouts through five starts, while Bieber is sitting with a crisp 57.
Both totals are mind-blowing and shows baseball fans the two clear and obvious Cy Young favorites in 2021.
Next up is Tampa Bay Rays starter Tyler Glasnow with 56, but he has made six starts on the year.
Bieber’s last start was also the first time this season he failed to reach 10 strikeouts in a game.
Shane Bieber, 95mph Fastball…and patented Bieber Turn/Gaze/Strut pic.twitter.com/KPD3KfDSow
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2021
He finished with nine in what ended up being a 2-1 loss to a New York Yankees squad with Gerrit Cole on the mound.
Unfortunately, the Indians offense couldn’t overcome the two solo home runs allowed by their ace.
Will things be different Friday night?
Indians Lineup Looking to Rebound
The Indians last played Wednesday afternoon in what can be described as a total disaster.
They lost to the Minnesota Twins by a final score of 10-2 and Logan Allen was so bad he was demoted immediately following the game.
Keuchel has taken on the Indians once this season in what ended up as a 4-3 White Sox victory.
He lasted five innings, allowing three runs in the infamous game that ended with Yu Chang throwing a ball off the head of Yasmani Grandal.
For those wondering, Chang is in the lineup Friday night.
Chang and Jake Bauers are two players looking to prove they deserve continued time at the first base spot.
However, Chang does have the luxury of being the utility man.
Bauers, who is not in the lineup, may be on his way out unless he has a major turnaround early in May.
Speaking of May, it arrives tomorrow.
The Indians are currently 11-12 and a final April record of 12-12 would be perfect given the way the offense has been boom-or-bust all month.
The pitching has been strong and closing out the month with a dominant Bieber game would be ideal.
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