Pirates in baseball: Gavin Williams has one of best outings of season in Guardians’ 8-2 win over A’s

by | Jul 21, 2025

Gavin Williams came ready to play on Sunday.

The ECU baseball alum had one of his best games of the season, matching his career high with 11 strikeouts in an 8-2 win over the Athletics. The 6-foot-6 righthander gave up a run on four hits and one walk. 

The Medina-Gazette noted that Williams (6-4) came into the game leading the majors with 57 walks and 18.3 pitches per inning.

“He was outstanding,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “He was down in the zone and had good counts the majority of the day. Gavin was special.”

Williams said his 5-4 record before the All-Star break was not acceptable.

“Hopefully, I can turn that around in the second half,” he said. “It comes down to pounding the zone and not trying to be too fine with every pitch.”

He actually made his MLB debut against the A’s on June 21, 2023.

See below to find out what the rest of the Pirates in baseball did on Sunday.

Major League Baseball

  • Connor Norby, Miami Marlins: On Injured List with wrist injury. Had surgery and will be out 6-8 weeks.
  • Alec Burleson, St. Louis Cardinals: 1-for-3 with a walk in 5-3 loss to Diamondbacks.
  • Shawn Armstrong, Texas Rangers: Did not pitch in 2-1 loss to Tigers
  • Gavin Williams, Cleveland Guardians: See above
  • Jeff Hoffman, Toronto Blue Jays: Did not pitch in 8-6 win over Giants
  • Clayton McCullough, Miami Marlins (manager): Team fell 7-4 to the Royals to fall to 46-52 on the season
  • Zach Agnos, Colorado Rockies: Pitched the ninth inning in a 7-1 loss to the Twins. Gave up a run on a hit.

Triple-A

  • Carson Whisenhunt, Sacramento RiverCats (Giants): Did not get decision in 5-4 loss to Oklahoma City. Started and went 3.2 innings, giving up a run on five hits with no walks and four strikeouts.

Double-A

  • Trey Yesavage, New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays): Did not pitch in 12-9 loss to Binghamton
  • Carter Spivey, Akron Rubber Ducks (Guardians): Placed on 7-day injured list with right shoulder strain on June 12.
  • Trey Benton, Akron Rubber Ducks (Guardians): On season-ending disabled list

Single-A

  • Carter Cunningham, Vancouver Canadians (Blue Jays): 1-for-4 in 6-4 loss to Spokane
  • Josh Moylan, Hudson Valley Renegades (Yankees): Game vs. Jersey Shore postponed due to weather. Will play on Aug. 20.
  • Josh Grosz, Hudson Valley Renegades (Yankees): Game vs. Jersey Shore postponed due to weather. Will play on Aug. 20.
  • Tyler Bradt, Peoria Chiefs (Cardinals): Did not pitch in 4-3 loss to Quad Cities
  • Jacob-Jenkins-Cowart, Beloit Sky Carp (Marlins): Did not play in 1-0 win over South Bend

  • Ryan McCrystal, Daytona Tortugas (Reds): 1-for-5 with run scored and also threw out a runner in a 9-3 loss to Fort Myers. He singled and scored in the sixth.
  • Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman, Modesto Nuts (Mariners): Placed on full-season disabled list on April 15.
  • Erik Ritchie, Clearwater Threshers (Phillies): Pitched in 6-0 loss to Lakeland. Pitched 1.2 innings and gave up a hit with three strikeouts
  • Landon Ginn, Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Cubs): Picked up his second hold of the season in 14-2 win over Augusta. Pitched 1.1 innings and gave up a hit with a strikeout.

Rookie League

  • Dixon Williams (Braves): According to Carlos Collazo of Baseball America, signed his draft contract with the Atlanta Braves, worth $497,500. The former ECU baseball star will now report to the Braves’ Florida Coast League team.
  • Ethan Young (Cardinals): Was a fifth-round pick and signed to a $630,000 deal. The slot value for the 150th pick is $470,100, according to Baseball America writer Carlos Collazo.

Frontier League

  • Danny Beal, Down East Bird Dawgs (Independent): Did not pitch in 9-4 win over Quebec

Photo credit: Gavin Williams (AP photo) 6-20-25

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