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Cleveland Guardians calling Gavin Williams up more than a year after minor league debut

By Chad Porto

Vanderbilt center fielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. (51) slides into first base for a single as East Carolina pitcher Gavin Williams (26) drops the throw during the eighth inning of game one in the NCAA Super Regional at Hawkins Field Friday, June 11, 2021 in Nashville, Tenn.Nas Vandy Ecu 016
Vanderbilt center fielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. (51) slides into first base for a single as East Carolina pitcher Gavin Williams (26) drops the throw during the eighth inning of game one in the NCAA Super Regional at Hawkins Field Friday, June 11, 2021 in Nashville, Tenn.Nas Vandy Ecu 016 /
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The Cleveland Guardians have called up Gavin Williams after more than a year in the minors.

The Cleveland Guardians made a bold call on Tuesday, as they called up starting pitcher Gavin Williams to the major league roster. Not only is he the third highly touted prospect to be called up to start for the Guardians, but he does so in near-record time.

You see Williams was drafted in 2021 and only made his minor league debut in 2022. He joined the club in 2022 after pitching for Eastern Carolina University for four seasons. In his last season with ECU, he went 10-1, with a 1.88 ERA. He had 133 strikeouts in just 81.1 innings pitched while walking 21 batters.

When he joined up with the Guardians minor league in 2022, he started with Single-A Lake County where he had a 1.45 ERA, with 67 strikeouts and 14 walks in just 45 innings. In Double-A Akron, he had a 2.70 ERA, with 82 strikeouts and 26 walks, in 70.0 innings pitched.

He started 2023 with Akron, throwing two games where he had an ERA of just 0.63, with 20 strikeouts, three walks, and 14.1 innings pitched. Then he moved up to Triple-A Columbus where he had a 3.13 ERA, 61 strikeouts, and 21 walks while pitching 46 innings.

He’ll likely start against the Oakland A’s either on Wednesday or Thursday.

Gavin Williams called up by the Cleveland Guardians

The Guardians have called up Williams to essentially replace Triston McKenzie who is being shut down for at least six weeks with an elbow issue. He’s not on the 40-man roster as of this writing, making it very likely that someone you like gets designated for assignment to get him up.

The fact the Guards have to DFA someone, coupled with McKenzie’s injury and Shane Bieber’s decline, it’s very likely that he won’t be going down to Columbus anytime soon. As long as he pitches well, that is.

With Bieber likely to be dealt with regardless of where the club is in the AL Central race, Williams seems like a long-term option for the club. And one that benefits them in more ways than one. Williams won’t incur enough service time in 2023 to have a full year, giving the team more time to hold onto him.

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  • Published on 06/21/2023 at 02:00 AM
  • Last updated at 06/21/2023 at 19:12 PM
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