4 Cleveland Guardians players who will be better in 2025

3. Gavin Williams - Starting Pitcher

The 2024 season was a rough one for Cleveland Guardians pitcher Gavin Williams. An injury in spring training delayed his season debut for the Guardians, resulting in his first start being made on July 3rd.

Unfortunately, Williams was not effective when he made his return to Cleveland's rotation, finishing the season with a 4.86 ERA and 1.368 WHIP in 76 innings of work over 16 games. This was a notable step back from what he posted in 2023, as his 3.29 ERA and 1.256 in 82 innings (16 games) was far superior.

The only real bright spot for Williams was that his strikeouts per nine innings pitched increased from 8.9 to 9.4. Williams also experienced a slight decrease in walk frequency, going from 4.1 walks issued per nine innings in 2023 to 3.8 in 2024, but there is still work to be done here.

As long as Williams can avoid another long-term injury during Cleveland's spring training activities in Arizona, it is pretty safe to assume that he will be significantly better on the mound for the Guardians. Williams has pitched effectively in the majors previously, and there is no reason not to believe he can do so again in 2025.