Gavin Williams just misses no-hit history vs. Mets after Guardians' old-school faith

For 8 1/3 innings, Gavin Williams was unhittable. While the New York Mets were able to generate some traffic against Williams early, the 26-year-old settled in and sent nearly every Mets hitter back to the dugout without reaching base. For a brief second, it looked like he was going to make history at Citi Field.

And then Juan Soto stepped to the plate.

With one out in the ninth inning, Soto crushed a home run to dead center field that ended Williams' no-hit bid. It would have been Cleveland's first no-hitter since at Len Barker's perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 15, 1981.

Gavin Williams just misses no-hit history vs. Mets after Guardians' old-school faith

It was an attempted no-hitter that harkened back to the days of old, as Williams threw 126 pitches in the outing, which is far and away the most he’s thrown in any major league start. He entered the ninth inning at 111 pitches. 

While it didn't end in a no-hitter, it did have the one signature play that’s a necessity when  C.J. Kayfus, a converted first baseman, made a fantastic diving catch in left field on a Mark Vientos liner. 

Williams relied primarily on his fastball, cutter and curveball in the start. He finished the day with six strikeouts and four walks. He was pulled from the game with one out remaining after he walked Brandon Nimmo. He received a standing ovation from Mets fans.

Hunter Gaddis came in to get the final out of the game and secure his second save of the season.

Soto's home run was an impressive piece of hitting, as he took a 97.1 mile per hour fastball to dead center field past the outstretched arm of Angel Martínez.

It's the closest a Cleveland pitcher had come to a no-hitter since Carlos Carrasco came one out away from a no-hitter in 2015.

Even though Williams wasn't able to pick up a no-hitter, it was still an incredible start. He got nine whiffs on his fastball and five on his curveball, and he only surrendered five batted balls with an exit velocity greater than 100 mph.

While losing the no-hitter stings, the Guardians still managed to pick up a win and a series sweep over the Mets, who would be in the postseason if the season ended today. They're not only one game back in the American League Wild Card standings — a deficit that could shrink to a 1/2 game if the Yankees lose to the Rangers later today.

They'll also only be six games behind the Tigers in the race for the American League Central so long as the Twins are able to hold onto to their lead in today's game. A month ago, the Guardians were 15 1/2 games back of Detroit.

At the end of July, Orioles manager Tony Mansolino sat in the visiting dugout at Progressive Field and said how he felt lucky that the Orioles missed out on Gavin Williams, who he said was the “ace” of the Guardians’ staff.

On Wednesday, Williams showed the rest of the baseball world why Mansolino feels that way.