MLB Rumors: Shane Bieber trade value, Phillies buying, demote Volpe?

MLB Rumors: Shane Bieber’s trade value goes down

If the Cleveland Guardians don’t make a run in the putrid AL Central by mid-July, the odds are in favor of them trading Shane Bieber. While Bieber is the ace of their pitching staff right now, Cleveland is also one of the best teams in the majors at developing pitching talent. In fact, were Bieber to leave right now, the likes of Triston McKenzie, Aaron Civale, Logan Allen, Tanner Bibee and even Gavin Williams — a top-50 prospect — are all capable of stepping up in his place.

And that’s why Cleveland will likely consider, and perhaps trade away, one of the best pitchers in the American League. Bieber sports a 3.57 ERA as of this writing, but he’s not the pitcher he once was, as Zack Meisel points out:

"“Bieber has far less margin for error than he did when he wielded a 94 mph fastball and when he leaned heavily on a lethal curveball. This year, though, his strikeout rate has plummeted and he has surrendered more hits and hard contact than ever before. He has tallied four or more strikeouts in only two of his 13 starts. His whiff rate has sharply decreased this season.”"

Rival teams may not view Bieber the way most of the fanbase does. His fastball velocity is a tick over 91 MPH this season, making the gap between his fastball and breaking pitches more narrow than its ever been.

An anonymous executive quoted in Rosenthal’s column went as far as to suggest Bieber isn’t a difference-maker, albeit a middle-rotation starter who could help a contending team make the postseason. He’s not an ace at this point, though, and that’ll hurt his value come the deadline.