The Pitch That Helped Guardians' Gavin Williams Become Elite

The Pitch That Helped Guardians' Gavin Williams Become EliteStory byTommy WildFri, November 28, 2025 at 9:00 PM UTC·2 min read

Gavin Williams always had the potential to be the ace of the staff, but injuries stalled his development once he reached the big-league level.

Finally, in 2025, Williams became the pitcher the Cleveland Guardians always knew he could be. The right-hander finished the year with a 3.54 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP in 31 starts, while looking like one of the best arms in baseball after the All-Star Break.

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Williams’ calling card always has been, and always will be, his elite velocity on his four-seam fastball, but there was one pitch the Big Rig added to his arsenal for the 2025 season that made him an elite pitcher, and that was the sweeper.

Per Baseball Savant, Williams hadn’t thrown a sweeper in an MLB game before the 2025 season, but it ended up making up 19.9 percent of all the pitches he threw last season, and it was more than just another successful pitch; Williams’ sweeper made him an elite pitcher.

Sep 30, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Gavin Williams (32) reacts after a strikeout on a check swing Detroit Tigers first base Spencer Torkelson (not pictured) in the sixth inning during game one of the Wildcard round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images

The sweeper was, at times, completely untouchable by opposing hitters, making it the perfect two-strike pitch for Williams to throw. The pitch had a strike rate of 42.4 percent, a put-away rate of 35.9 percent, and an MLB-leading whiff rate of 44 percent.

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Needless to say, all those numbers ranked the best out of any pitch in Williams’ mix.

A perfect example of how effective this pitch was came in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series. Williams took the ball for the Guardians and threw 6.0 innings, giving up no earned runs, issuing one walk, and striking out eight batters.

Of those eight punch-outs, four of them came on the sweeper, and the pitch generated 10 strikes,

Again, the reason the sweeper was so efficient was because of how well it complemented Williams’ fastball. The sweeper’s 86.5 mph average, compared with the 96.6 mph heater, makes it extremely difficult for hitters to pick up the timing of it.

It truly is the perfect off speed pitch to pair with the heater and should continue to be a key piece to Williams' success moving forward.

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