4 difficult decisions the Cleveland Guardians will have to make this offseason

2. Re-sign Shane Bieber or let him walk in free agency?

There not be many people who actually thought the Cleveland Guardians had any chance of retaining the services of Shane Bieber beyond the 2024 season. Considering that Bieber had been dangled in trade talks in 2023 and most expecting him to be dealt by the deadline in 2024, Bieber playing in Cleveland in 2025 seemed like a long shot. Well, not anymore.

Bieber pitched just two games in 2024 and was shut down for the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery. This put an abrupt end to any trade rumors involving Bieber but did not stop the speculation of where he might pitch in 2025.

There is no doubt that Bieber will garner some attention on the free agent market, even though he missed pretty much all of last season as well as experiencing a drop in velocity and strikeout frequency in recent years. The only question is how much a team will be willing to pay someone who fits this description.

Cleveland may feel a lot more comfortable giving Bieber a contract with incentives that others feel may be too much when his past few seasons are factored into the equation. The Guardians will just have to determine where the point at which they are no longer comfortable from a financial standpoint. Then, and only then, will they have a better idea of how they will approach the free agency of Shane Bieber.