CLEVELAND — As the Guardians take on the Oakland A's in a three-game series, Wednesday's matchup holds a little extra excitement as the organization's top prospect takes the mound for his MLB debut.
Gavin Williams, the Guardians' No. 1 ranked prospect, has been making a name for himself in the minors, rising quickly from the Akron RubberDucks and the Columbus Clippers while impressing on the mound.
Williams posted an impressive 2.93 ERA with 61 strikeouts in 46 innings with Triple-A Columbus and, before, in Akron, gave up just one run with 20 strikeouts in 14 innings. His peak of a 101.1 mph four-seam fastball isn't far off from his average velocity of 96.9 mph.
It was clear Williams' talent was ready to take a new level, so the Guardians called him up. His family was the next to find out after he got the call.
"Luckily, my mom was with my sister and my grandparents, so I only had to make one phone call instead of three," Williams said. "She started screaming about two seconds into the phone call, so I don't really know what happened after that."
Williams' family might be the most excited for the Major League debut on Wednesday—more than 50 of his family and friends are expected in the stands to see his milestone moment.
More than family and friends, Williams' teammates are full of excitement.
Guardians pitcher Logan Allen, who made his MLB debut earlier this season, has worked closely with Williams during their time in the minors. Allen said he believes Williams will come out in his debut confident and ready to shine.
"I expect him to come out here and kind of be able to settle in right away, and I think that's such a big thing that allows you to have success," Allen said.
Allen described Williams' strength on the mound as the impressive stuff he gives to opposing batters—and his pure competitiveness.
"Electric heater, he's got a big curveball, slider, changeup, he throws a lot of strikes, he competes," Allen said.
That stuff has his teammates excited to see him continue to rise as he enters the majors.
"I think I'm just excited to sit back and watch it and enjoy it, and I'm happy to be with him to start this journey," Allen said.
The excitement for Williams' debut comes from his family, teammates, and of course, the fans. But Williams plans to leave that excitement to others as he focuses on staying in the moment as he takes the next step in his baseball career.
"It's nice to move up pretty quick, but you don't really want to look forward. You want to just stay in the present moment, really be where your feet are. That's what I've been told all through college, and that's what I've been doing. Not looking forward too much," Williams said.
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