CLEVELAND — Gavin Williams retired the first 15 Arizona Diamondbacks batters he faced today.
Another way of saying that sentence: Williams was working on a perfect game bid, as he was flawless through five innings, allowing zero baserunners while striking out nine of those 15 batters.
Williams has looked strong over the last few weeks and appears to be at the atop of his game in this outing. Through five innings, he had thrown 67 pitches.
But in the top of the sixth inning, Tim Tawa singled to right field to end Williams’ bids for Cleveland baseball history. Later, both benches cleared, with Guardians manager Stephen Vogt and third base coach Rouglas Odor were heated. It’s possible the Cleveland dugout wasn’t happy with Tawa attempting to bunt before his single, or they might have been upset with something that was said.
When was the last Cleveland no-hitter or perfect game?
The last time a Cleveland pitcher tossed a no-hitter was May 15, 1981, when Len Barker completed a perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays. He struck out 11 batters in that game.
Gavin Williams stats
Entering this start, Williams carried a 3.71 ERA with 168 strikeouts in 133 1/3 innings and a 10-6 record.
Ryan Lewis covers the Guardians for the Akron Beacon Journal. He can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Gavin Williams retires first 15 Diamondbacks before allowing first hit
Reporting by Ryan Lewis, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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By Ryan Lewis, Akron Beacon Journal | USA TODAY Network
