Gavin Williams gave the Guardians exactly what they needed Thursday afternoon: a shutdown start, a pile of strikeouts, and a reminder that his name still belongs in the Cy Young conversation.
With Cleveland trying to keep pace in the American League Wild Card race, Williams held the Giants to two runs over 5 2/3 innings in a 4-2 win. The result nudged the Guardians forward in the standings, giving them a little ground on the idle Twins, and it came with another milestone for Williams: he reached 200 strikeouts for the first time in his career, with more than a month still left in the season.
That’s the kind of run that gets attention.
Williams has now allowed three runs or fewer in nine of his last 11 starts, and six of those outings have featured double-digit strikeouts. He had his stuff working from the jump Thursday, finishing with seven whiffs on his fastball and six on his sweeper. The only real damage came when Willy Adames got to a fastball down in the zone and turned it into a two-run homer.
Even with that mistake, the bigger picture keeps getting stronger. Williams now owns a 3.72 ERA across 26 starts, and he’s already piled up 154 2/3 innings. That puts him on track to cruise past his previous career high of 167 2/3 innings, set last season over 31 starts.
The numbers are starting to stack up in a way that matters. He’s working deeper into games, missing bats at a high rate, and giving voters plenty to notice.
There’s still a hurdle in front of him, though. Blue Jays ace Dylan Cease has also crossed the 200-strikeout mark, sitting at 201 in just 137 2/3 innings to go with a 2.42 ERA. Williams has the résumé building fast, but Cease still has the cleaner case for now.
Still, this race is far from settled. A couple rough weeks for Cease and a couple more dominant turns from Williams could change everything.
Cleveland made sure Williams’ outing had support early. The Guardians struck for three runs in the first inning on RBI singles from Patrick Bailey and Steven Kwan, plus a sacrifice fly from Nathaniel Lowe. Kwan added another RBI single in the sixth, and Brayan Rocchio chipped in with an RBI single in the eighth.
The Blue Jays’ win over the Braves cut into some of the night’s momentum, but the Guardians still took care of business against a team with a losing record. Cleveland moved to 62-66 and sits a game behind the Twins in the AL Wild Card standings.
Next up is Colorado.
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What makes this latest stop especially interesting is the roster squeeze that comes with it. Arias is out of minor league options, so Chicago cannot simply stash him away for insurance if the fit is not perfect. He has to stay on the major league roster unless the Cubs take the risk of designating him again and he gets through waivers, which leaves his immediate future tied to how aggressively they want to use him in the middle infield. [Read more 🡒]
Former Guardians Prospect Just Made Cleveland Revisit An Uncomfortable Trade
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Zach Plesac's Latest Baseball Chapter Is A Tough Reminder For Cleveland Fans
Zach Plesacs baseball journey has taken another turn, and for Cleveland fans it serves as a reminder of how quickly a once-promising pitching career can drift from the big leagues. The former Guardians right-hander has already been through stops with the Angels and several independent and minor league clubs, keeping his professional life alive well beyond the familiar settings where he first made his name in Cleveland.
Now in the American Association, Plesac has found himself in some unfamiliar roles as he keeps chasing another chance to stick. His latest chapter has even included time in the field, and a small offensive contribution in one of those games showed just how far his path has stretched from the mound-only profile most fans remember. [Read more 🡒]