Gavin Williams is nasty enough to almost make Jose Ramirez forget the rules

Gavin Williams has been quietly building into one of the nastiest arms in the American League, and against the Twins he had one of those innings where the strikeout pitch never changes because the hitters can't do anything about it anyway. Three up, three down, nine pitches, all swords. That's an immaculate inning, and it's the second one recorded in MLB this season.

Rob Friedman

@PitchingNinja

Gavin Williams getting the very rare 3Ks in 1 inning, all swords on the same pitch type (sweeper). ⚔️⚔️⚔️

What made it wilder is that this wasn't some out-of-nowhere flash. Williams was already carving up the Twins lineup, and by the time the immaculate 4th inning happened he'd racked up 7 strikeouts through 4 innings. The sweeper had turned into a problem nobody in the Minnesota lineup could solve, and Williams kept going back to it because why wouldn't he.

Rob Friedman

@PitchingNinja

Gavin Williams, K'ing the Side in the 4th 7Ks thru 4

This marks Cleveland's fifth immaculate inning in franchise history and the first since 2022, putting Williams in the company of Zach Plesac, Carlos Carrasco and Justin Masterson. He didn't stop there either — Williams finished with 11 strikeouts across 7 innings while allowing just 2 hits, an outing that looked every bit like a guy pitching his way toward becoming the Guardians' new ace.

Rob Friedman

@PitchingNinja

Gavin Williams, Immaculate Inning 😇

The chaos almost overshadowed the feat, though. Jose Ramirez, manning third base, was reportedly so locked into the moment that he nearly airmailed the ball into the stands instead of tossing it back to the mound or the dugout — a detail that would've been a genuinely embarrassing footnote if it had actually happened. It's the kind of thing that only gets funnier once you know the immaculate inning history and the Twins' inability to touch a single sweeper.

Jomboy Media

@JomboyMedia

Gavin Williams tossed MLB’s second immaculate inning of the season and Jose Ramirez didn’t know and almost threw it in the stands

Despite the show, Williams and the Guardians reportedly didn't walk away with the win, with the game stretching into extra innings after Minnesota found a way to tie it late. That's the cruel part of pitching this well — a start like this deserves a win, and sometimes the bullpen or the bats just don't cooperate. Still, for a guy making a little over $800K this year, throwing an immaculate inning with 11 strikeouts on 2 hits allowed is the loudest kind of contract-year audition, and it's exactly the type of start that gets people talking about Williams as Cleveland's No. 1 starter going forward.