Gavin Williams Rehab Start Recap, Guardians News

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Gavin Williams made his third rehab start with the Columbus Clippers on Sunday.

Jun 27, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Gavin Williams (63) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-USA TODAY Sports / Peter Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

It may not be too much longer before Gavin Williams is back and pitching for the Cleveland Guardians. The 24-year-old hasn’t thrown a big league pitch yet this season due to an elbow injury he suffered during spring training.

WIlliams made his third rehab start on Sunday afternoon as the Columbus Clippers (Triple-A) took on the Indianapolis Indians. He threw a total of 50 pitches (33 strikes) over 3.0 innings in this start. Williams ultimately gave up three hits and two earned runs and struck out three batters in this start.

Just like when we broke down his last rehab start, the box score only tells half the story.  

Williams threw 28 fastballs on Sunday which had an average velocity of 95 mph and he mazed on at 96.5 mph. This max was slightly down from his 98.1 mph fastball he threw in his second rehab start from last Tuesday. 

The biggest difference in this start compared to his last is that Williams mixed in more offspeed pitches. He threw his curveball nine times, cutter seven times, changeup four times, and slider twice. William’s first two start were primarily dominated by the heater.

Jun 27, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Gavin Williams (63) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-USA TODAY Sports / Peter Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

It’s still unclear when Williams will make his first start of the season. He threw 22 pitches in his first rehab start on May 30 and bumped that up to 33 pitches on June 4, which brings us to the 50 pitches he threw on Sunday. 

His velocity has looked good and the offspeed is coming along, but there still is build-up to do. Based on the pitch count alone, one or two more rehab starts before Williams officially makes a start for the Guardians feels like a strong possibility.