After his first 19 starts last season, right elbow inflammation prevented Guardians ace Shane Bieber from starting again until September — condensing his campaign and only allowing for two more outings after he returned.

But in 2024, Bieber’s season will end after just two promising appearances.

The team announced Saturday that Bieber, 28, will undergo a reconstruction of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow after experiencing “medial right elbow pain” following his outings against the A’s and Mariners.

“Given the recurrence of symptoms following an extended period of rest and rehabilitation during the 2023 season and subsequent off-season, surgical reconstruction of the ulnar collateral ligament has been recommended,” the team said in its statement.

Bieber, who won the American League Cy Young Award in 2020, made his fifth consecutive Opening Day start this year.

He threw 12 scoreless innings to start the season, scattering 10 hits across those outings, striking out a league-best 20 batters, walking just one and earning two wins.

“Just incredible on a night like tonight,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said after Bieber’s second outing against the Mariners, according to the Associated Press. “Cold, windy and just dominating out there. It’s really fun to watch two times in a row.”

But the elbow issues became an issue again, prompting the latest injury absence of Bieber’s career after his elbow inflammation last year and a shoulder strain that limited him to 16 starts — and just two after June 13 — during the 2021 season.

The Guardians, in their first season under Vogt, had pieced together a 6-2 burst to start the season entering Saturday’s game against the Twins.

It was an early sign of a push for the AL Central that, The Post’s Jon Heyman reported in January, made them unlikely to trade Bieber in the first place.

Instead, they’ll be forced to navigate the rest of 2024 without him.

Logan Allen, ex-Met Carlos Carrasco, Tanner Bibee and Triston McKenzie were the other four members of the Guardians’ rotation behind Bieber to start the season, with McKenzie — who allowed five runs, with four of those earned, across 3 ⅓ innings — the only one to earn a loss through the opening eight games.

And with Bieber’s injury occurring in the early stage of the campaign, the Guardians still have time to acquire another starter if they wanted.

But that doesn’t mean it’ll become any easier to replace their ace again.