Some time in June, the season started to get away from Gavin Williams. The Cleveland Guardians’ ace was struggling, giving up more runs and walks than he was accustomed to, and striking out fewer batters than he was used to.
The right-hander also wasn’t pitching deep into games. In fact, in five starts during the month, he posted a 6.04 ERA in just 25.1 innings, and Cleveland lost three of those games. That was after it won nine of its first 12 appearances.
But since the Fourth of July, Williams has turned things around in a big way. His strikeouts are way up, and his walks are way down, creating a combination that has rarely been seen in MLB history.
Analyst Sarah Langs points out that the Guardians pitcher has been on a roll, with a five-game stretch that’s matched by only two other pitchers.
“Rolling: With his start on Sunday, Gavin Williams has now struck out at least 10 batters and issued no more than one walk in five straight outings. That’s tied for the second-longest such streak since at least 1900 with 2018 Chris Sale, and behind only 2016 Clayton Kershaw, with six straight,” Langs wrote.
Williams has been dominant for almost a month now, with his run of excellence starting on July 9, when he struck out 11 and walked one against the Minnesota Twins. He followed that with back-to-back 11-strikeout, no-walk starts against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 18 and the Twins on July 23, which included a very rare immaculate inning.
He upped his strikeouts to 12 with one walk against the Cincinnati Reds on July 28, before striking out 10 and walking one against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday. His raw totals of 55 strikeouts and just three walks are also among historic company, a list that includes Corey Kluber, who had a similar run for Cleveland in 2015.
Unfortunately, the Guardians have managed to win just three of these five historic games, scoring two runs combined in the defeats. Cleveland was tied for first place in the AL Central when Williams’ streak started, but it enters play Friday three games behind the Chicago White Sox in the division.
Williams will next take the mound on Saturday in the second game of a crucial three-game set against the White Sox, and the Guardians will be hoping for another strong performance that this time results in a victory.
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