Tanner Bibee was supposed to be the Cleveland Guardians‘ Opening Day starter at the beginning of the 2025 season.
Bibee was given the honor a week before the regular season officially got underway, prepared both mentally and physically to set the tone for his team, but ultimately didn’t get the opportunity to open the season on the mound.
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The right-hander came down with a case of food poisoning, which pushed Ben Lively into the starting role for the Guardians.
Bibee’s first outing was pushed to the second game of the season, and everything fell into place, but even the pitcher admitted that actually throwing on Opening Day was a career accolade he wanted to achieve.
Now, Bibee is getting a second chance, as the team announced on Friday that he will, in fact, be the Opening Day starter for the 2026 season as the Guardians take on the Seattle Mariners.
“Definitely really cool,” said Bibee after the decision was made. “Obviously, I didn’t get to do it last year, so I think the emotions will still be the same. So I’m pretty excited.”
Mar 30, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Tanner Bibee (28) pitches during the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
Even though Bibee had his chance to be the Opening Day starter for the Guardians in 2025, and utility didn’t get to, he’s very grateful he’s getting another opportunity.
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“Definitely some thoughts creep in of like, ‘Was it never meant to be?’ But the fact that you get the second time, that’s kind of a vote of confidence, and it’s a really nice thing to just have the opportunity again to go out there and, lead us on every night,” Bibee continued.
Bibee is coming off an up-and-down season in 2025, logging a 4.24 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP in 31 starts. That said, the pitcher is likely hoping he can pick up right where he left off last September, when he only allowed four earned runs over the entire month.
The Guardians still have several big decision tos to make before Opening Day, but they can at least check one off the list with Bibee officially being named the team’s starter.
Hopefully, Bibee doesn’t get sick the night before the season starts, and he, too, will get to check off a box for a major career accomplishment.
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