Short but still sweet: Bieber's accolades grow

CLEVELAND — Shane Bieber’s scoreless innings streak may have been snapped at 14 and he may not have reached the sixth inning for the first time this year, but in typical Bieber fashion, he still fanned 10 batters and added his name to another Top 10 list in the Major

CLEVELAND — Shane Bieber’s scoreless innings streak may have been snapped at 14 and he may not have reached the sixth inning for the first time this year, but in typical Bieber fashion, he still fanned 10 batters and added his name to another Top 10 list in the Major League Baseball history books.

Bieber logged his 13th career double-digit strikeout game and allowed one run on five hits through five frames on 103 pitches in the Indians’ 4-1 victory over the Brewers on Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field. The 25-year-old has now struck out at least 10 batters in a Major League-best six of his nine starts this season. Max Scherzer has recorded the second-most double-digit strikeout games with four.

As usual, Bieber was able to rely on his full arsenal for his strikeouts, inducing four on his heater, four on his slider and two on his curve. He got off to a hot start, fanning seven of the first nine batters he faced, including five in a row from the second to third innings. The Indians’ record for most consecutive strikeouts in a game is held by Corey Kluber with seven (May 4, 2014).

• Box score

Bieber may not have taken Kluber’s record, but he still joined some elite company after his 10 strikeouts against the Brewers. Through nine starts, the right-hander has now recorded 94 strikeouts, which ranks ninth in Major League history in that span, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Here’s a look at the elite company he joins:

Randy Johnson (104, 2001)
Pedro Martinez (102, 1999)
Randy Johnson (100, 2000)
Pedro Martinez (96, 2001)
Curt Schilling (96, 1998)
Chris Sale (95, 2017)
Pedro Martinez (95, 2000)
Curt Schilling (95, 2002)
Shane Bieber (94, 2020)

After being perfect through 3 2/3 frames, Bieber started to run into trouble in the fourth and fifth innings. He came out of a two-out jam with runners on the corners unscathed in the fourth by getting Orlando Arcia to ground into a fielder’s choice, and escaped a four-hit fifth inning with just one run by recording back-to-back two-out bases-loaded strikeouts to end the frame.