CLEVELAND, Ohio — Much like the Thunderbirds diving overhead Progressive Field, Tanner Bibee’s outing against the Seattle Mariners on Sunday featured a controlled climb, then a sudden drop — four crisp innings giving way to a fifth that unraveled in an instant. It was a familiar flight path for the young right-hander, whose major league career has swung between sharp ascents and sudden plunges.

The Guardians’ 25-year-old has seen his 2025 season turn into a test of endurance, execution and, most importantly, mental resolve.

“It’s super hard. But, I mean, sometimes it’s going to go your way, sometimes it’s not. I think the best way is you just can’t ride the rollercoaster. … at the same time, I feel like I’m a big proponent of it’s always going to even out. So, it’s just kind of finding a way to stay in the middle,” Bibee said after Sunday’s 4-2 loss to the Mariners.

That perspective may serve him well because the numbers have not been pretty.

After Sunday’s 6.1-inning, four-run outing vs. Seattle, Bibee owns a 9-11 record and a 4.77 ERA. His August was brutal: 6.15 ERA over six games, with a career-worst streak of eight straight starts surrendering four or more runs.

Since July 7, he’s allowed 11 homers — fifth-most in the American League. His strikeout rate is down (8.41 K/9 compared to 9.69 last year), his walk rate is up (3.52 BB/9 vs. 2.28 last year) and he’s already set a career high with 26 home runs allowed.

This isn’t just about mechanics, though. It’s about keeping his head when everything else feels like it’s spinning.

That challenge surfaced last week when frustration boiled over during a 9-0 loss to Tampa Bay.

After a sloppy inning, Bibee stormed into the dugout and barked at his teammates to “wake up.” The cameras caught it. So did manager Stephen Vogt, who delivered a quick, firm rebuke. Since making the jump to the majors, Bibee has been grappling with execution and the expectations that come with being a frontline arm on a wild card chaser.

Sunday’s outing against Seattle showed both progress and the same cracks that have defined his season. He limited damage early, threw strikes, and leaned on his sinker, changeup and sweeper instead of his four-seamer, which he threw just 13 times.

“I thought it was a good step in the right direction,” Bibee said. “Through a lot of strikes, [and] a lot of competitive pitches.”

Bibee wasn’t the only one to see the positives from Sunday’s outing.

“I thought Tanner was great,” Vogt said. “That’s as good of strike throwing as we’ve seen from him in a while. His stuff was really, really good. I thought [it was an] outstanding outing by him. It didn’t end the way it should’ve, but I thought Tanner threw the ball excellent today.”

Even when the positives stand out, the negatives have a way of sneaking in. Either as a mental struggle or simply as balls leaving the yard. For Bibee on Sunday, it was the latter, starting in the fifth with a leadoff single by J.P. Crawford and a two-run blast from Randy Arozarena two batters later.

Two innings later, after finding himself with men on once again, he walked the nine-hitter and Vogt pulled him, only to watch Julio Rodríguez beat out a slow roller up the middle that plated two more runs after a controversial call.

Bibee stood in the dugout, hands on his head, stunned. His jaw dropped — not in rage this time, but in disbelief. His stat line swelled from two runs to four. The swings of the outing echoed the ups and downs that have punctuated his journey, a constant ride he’s still learning to navigate.

“Throwing a shutout in an outing is extremely difficult in the big leagues,” Bibee said. “I feel like you have to be okay with giving up runs, whether it’s one, whether it’s two, three, four, whatever it is. Because as soon as you become okay with it, it becomes a lot easier to get over it. It seems backwards, but life is backwards sometimes.”

This is the paradox of Bibee’s year. His flashes of command, competitiveness and poise show why the Guardians believe in him. But the lapses, the mental strain and the mounting numbers underline how far he still has to go.

For a 25-year-old in just his third MLB season, this is the crucible. The Guardians, now four games behind Seattle for the final Wild Card spot, need more than flashes. They need Bibee to steady himself, to learn quickly, to handle the weight of September baseball.

The roller coaster isn’t slowing down. Bibee admits he can’t ride it. But the truth is, he already is — hands up, jaw clenched, searching for a way to turn turbulence into growth.

This next month won’t just define the Guardians’ playoff chase. It will tell them, and Bibee himself, what kind of pitcher he’s going to be.

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