Guardians' ace Shane Bieber open to long-term deal with club

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Major League Baseball's lengthy lockout this winter didn't have any impact on Shane Bieber's wedding plans. He's still happily getting hitched.

It didn't alter his desire for a long-term union with the Guardians, either.

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The 2020 Cy Young Award winner, limited to just 16 starts last season due to a right shoulder strain, said Tuesday he remains open to signing a long-term contract with Cleveland.

"I love the organization. I love the people," Bieber said after the Guardians held their first full-squad workout in Goodyear, Arizona. "I love the relationships, and am always open to discussing something and figuring something out."

The 26-year-old, who has quickly become one of baseball's elite pitchers, is arbitration eligible —- salaries for the 2022 will be exchanged next week — for the next three seasons.

While Bieber is certainly a top priority, Guardians president Chris Antonetti wouldn't get into specifics on Monday when asked about contract talks with players. It goes without saying that the club would like to lock up Bieber for as long as possible.

"I do think we’ll have some of that internal conversations," Antonetti said. "The timing of that is really hard to say when we’ll be able to do that just because of the compressed nature of the offseason."

FILE - Cleveland Indians' Shane Bieber (57) reacts between innings during a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, on Aug. 4, 2020. The 2020 Cy Young winner, who was limited to just 16 starts last season due to a right shoulder strain, said Tuesday, March 15, 2022, that he remains open to signing a long-term contract