‘Like playing video games’: Guardians starter pushes all the right buttons in dominant win (2024)

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Watching Tanner Bibee dominate on the mound Wednesday reminded his manager, a former catcher, of what it is like to be behind the plate when an ace pitcher is in complete command of his arsenal. It’s a situation that is extremely rare, even in the major leagues.

“But it’s a fun night to catch when you have an elite pitcher with all of his pitches working,” Vogt said after Bibee tossed six shutout innings, striking out a career-high 12 Seattle batters in an 8-0 Guardians victory at Progressive Field.

“It kind of feels like you’re playing video games,” Vogt added. “I mean, now we actually press buttons (PitchComm) and so we always make that joke, but it’s so much fun to call a game for someone like that who is executing over and over.”

The guy calling those pitches says Bibee made his job easy.

“I’ve just got to call a pitch set up, and he’s throwing it through me,” said catcher Bo Naylor. “The way that his pitches have been working, the way that he changes shapes, gives different looks, I feel it proves why he went out and got six today.”

Bibee, who earned his fifth win, struck out seven of the first 10 batters he faced and allowed just one base runner in his first three innings. His 12 strikeouts were the most this season by any Cleveland pitcher, and the most by a Guardians starter since Lucas Giolito whiffed 12 on Sept. 15. He said afterward that he could feel the video game rhythm between himself and his catcher.

“Especially when certain pitches are working how I want them to,” Bibee said. “Bo did a great job tonight and whatever he called, I threw.”

Bibee became the first Guardians pitcher to strike out 10 or more batters in consecutive starts since Gavin Williams did so in August last season. The last Cleveland pitcher to fan at least 23 batters in a two-game span was Shane Bieber in April 2021.

Just one day after Vogt used six relievers because starter Triston McKenzie failed to get out of the third inning, Bibee rescued the bullpen with an efficient six frames, generating 20 swings and misses on 93 total pitches while allowing just three hits and one walk.

“Big-time pitchers step up when they know the bullpen is light, and it’s exactly what Tanner did tonight,” Vogt said. “The punchouts were efficient. That’s a good lineup over there and he navigated it really well.”

One week after letting a brilliant outing in Cincinnati slip away with a mistake in the sixth inning, Bibee redeemed himself by punching out a pair and finishing his night strong. The key, he said, was working ahead of Seattle’s hitters and staying consistent.

“Breaking balls, cutter, slider, slurve, I think they were all doing really good and it helped get them off the heater,” Bibee said. “Then towards the end we kind of flip-flopped it and they didn’t really feel like they knew what was coming.”

Vogt said as he watches Bibee mature and grow, the difference is his efficiency in mid-counts where previously he would try to be too fine once he got ahead of a hitter.

“He’d try to be perfect in the mid-count and then before you know it’s 3-2, a couple foul balls and it’s a seven-pitch at-bat,” Vogt said. “Now, it’s three, four pitches and they’re out of there. And so that’s how you go deep into games, and I think he’s learning that more and more and attacking the zone.”

Naylor said he tries to get Bibee a pitch that he has confidence in no matter what the situation.

“I know that with whatever I’m calling or with whatever he shakes to, he’s throwing it with conviction,” Naylor said. “That just makes the pitches play that much better.”