The Cleveland Guardians had several outstanding pitching performances last season. In their second-half push to make the playoffs, one start in particular stood out above the rest.
Facing the New York Mets on Aug. 6, Gavin Williams almost made history. He took a no-hitter into the ninth inning but fell two outs short of the accomplishment.
MLB.com recently named Williams’ gem as the Guardians’ best single-game performance of 2025.
“In the Guardians’ 4-1 win at Citi Field, Williams nearly ended Cleveland’s 44-year no-hitter drought, which dates to Len Barker’s perfect game on May 15, 1981. The right-hander’s bid ended when he allowed a one-out solo home run to Juan Soto in the ninth inning, on a 1-0 four-seam fastball on the outer half of the plate. Nonetheless, it was an incredible effort by Williams that was reflective of the major strides he took in 2025. Over 8 2/3 innings, he threw 126 pitches (75 strikes), struck out six and overcame four walks to come two outs shy of history,” Tim Stebbins wrote.
Williams encountered trouble right away when Mets leadoff hitter and former Cleveland star Francisco Lindor hit a line drive off the pitcher’s glove. He recovered and threw him out.
From there, the walks raised Williams’ pitch count, but he settled down to dominate New York. After he struck out Lindor to lead off the ninth inning, Soto ended the bid for the no-hitter. Williams got Pete Alonso to fly out before reliever Hunter Gaddis got the final out.
It was a breakout season for Williams, who finished his third MLB campaign with a 12-5 record and 3.06 ERA in 31 starts. After helping the Guardians overcome a historic deficit to win the AL Central title, he started Game 1 of the AL Wild Card series against the Detroit Tigers.
Williams lost that game, and the Guardians went on to lose the series to end their season. However, the promising signs shown by Williams, along with fellow starters Tanner Bibee, Slade Cecconi and Joey Cantillo, have fans optimistic about the rotation heading into next season.
Though the Guardians have been relatively quiet this offseason, they are again expected to be among the top contenders in the American League.
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