On Wednesday, Cleveland Guardians starter Gavin Williams flirted with history.
He came two outs short of throwing the first no-hitter in franchise history since Len Barker’s perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays in 1981.
He earned the first 25 outs of that game before giving up a solo home run to Juan Soto in the ninth, erasing his no-hitter bid and also his ongoing shutout.
He was later taken out with 126 pitches, so he couldn’t even log the complete game.
Still, it was a magnificent effort for the surging right-hander, who is slowly blossoming into an ace before our eyes.
Speaking in the Foul Territory podcast, Williams said he would have been willing to do anything to get the no-hitter from a workload standpoint, even if it meant coming close to 150 pitches.
“When I went out for the 9th, if it took me 150 pitches to try and get a no-hitter, that’s what I would have done,” he said.
"When I went out for the 9th, if it took me 150 pitches to try and get a no-hitter, that's what I would have done."
Gavin Williams details what was working for him during his near no-hitter on Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/S2x7gUpOSI
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) August 8, 2025
It shows that he is hungry and driven, even if the Guardians probably wouldn’t have been thrilled to have him throw 150 pitches.
The human body is just not designed to throw as many times at max effort, because it maximizes injury risk.
It was still an amazing performance from arguably the best pitcher on the Guardians’ staff right now.
Williams’ ERA is now a rock-solid 3.17 after Wednesday’s gem, and it keeps getting better and better with every outing.
He still struggles with walks here and there, but he is maturing and learning to work around these bases on balls, knowing that they are better than catching too much of the strike zone on most occasions.
As long as Williams is healthy, the Guardians will stand a chance to secure a postseason berth.
NEXT: Guardians' OF Prospect Has Tied Impressive Career High In Triple-A
