The Cleveland Guardians transferred right-hander Gavin Williams (elbow) to the 60-day injured list on Thursday to make room on the 40-man roster for right-hander Darren McCaughan, who was acquired in a trade. Williams resumed throwing a week ago while recovering from a right-elbow injury, but he still has a ways to go before he's an option to rejoin the team's major-league starting rotation. When the 24-year-old is healthy, though, he should have a rotation spot waiting for him in Cleveland after he went 3-5 with a 3.29 ERA (4.05 FIP) and 1.26 WHIP while walking 37 and striking out 81 in 82 innings over his first 16 major-league starts in 2023. If Williams can reduce his number of walks when he returns, he could be a major contributor in all fantasy leagues.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (elbow) has been cleared to begin throwing and did so on Thursday pain-free, according to manager Stephen Vogt. An elbow injury has kept Williams from making his 2024 debut with the Guardians after a fine rookie season in 2023 in which he went 3-5 with a 3.29 ERA (4.05 FIP) and 1.26 WHIP with 81 strikeouts and 37 walks in 82 innings in his first 16 major-league starts. He allowed just one earned run in 4 2/3 spring training innings over two appearances as well before getting hurt and landing on the injured to open the year. The 24-year-old former 23rd overall pick in 2021 out of East Carolina isn't exactly close to joining Cleveland's rotation, but he showed enough last year to be worthy of stashing in mixed fantasy leagues if you have the room on your roster.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (elbow) felt the same right-elbow discomfort after his latest start in Arizona as he did this spring. He will receive an injection and will be shut down for seven days as a result. The Guardians are hoping Williams can then resume throwing and won't be set back too far. It's obviously bad news, and there remains no timetable for a potential return for the 24-year-old. Williams started last year at Double-A Akron before making it all the way to Cleveland's starting rotation in his rookie campaign, where he impressed by going 3-5 with a 3.29 ERA (4.05 FIP) and 1.26 WHIP with 37 walks and 81 strikeouts in 82 innings over 16 starts. It's becoming more of an uphill battle for Williams to return to the Guardians in the first half of 2024.

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said before Friday's game versus the Oakland Athletics that starting pitcher Gavin Williams (elbow) will pitch on Saturday in Arizona. After throwing his first simulated game on Monday, Williams appears to be closing in on a minor-league rehab assignment if all continues to go smoothly in his recovery from right elbow discomfort. Although he has a chance to be activated from the injured list before April's end, an early-May return is probably more realistic. The 24-year-old former top prospect recorded a 3.29 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and 81:37 K:BB across 82 innings (16 starts) for the Guards in his rookie season in 2023, and it's about time to make sure he's not floating around any waiver wires in fantasy leagues. In the meantime, veterans Carlos Carrasco and Ben Lively will keep battling to hold down spots in Cleveland's rotation when Williams eventually makes his 2024 regular-season debut.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (elbow) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session this week during the series against the Seattle Mariners that ends on Wednesday. Williams landed on the injured list to begin the 2024 regular season after dealing with right-elbow inflammation in the middle of spring training in March. The 24-year-old will hopefully embark on a minor-league rehab assignment shortly after he gets back on the mound. Barring setbacks on his rehab assignment, he has a chance to make his season debut before the end of April. The former 23rd overall pick in 2021 out of East Carolina went 3-5 with a solid 3.29 ERA and 1.26 WHIP with 37 walks and 81 strikeouts in 82 innings in his first 16 major-league starts in 2023, so he will have a rotation spot waiting for him when he's ready.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (elbow) will start the year on the injured list. He will need another three or four days without throwing before he ramps back up and won't have enough time to build up completely before Opening Day on March 28. Williams had an MRI exam and everything looked good structurally, though, so he should be able to make his 2024 debut at some point later in April. The 24-year-old injured his right elbow while throwing weighted balls during a spring workout, but the injury isn't overly serious. Williams looked good in his first MLB season in 2023, going 3-5 with a 3.29 ERA and 1.26 WHIP with 37 walks and 81 strikeouts in 82 innings over 16 starts. While Williams was a little fortunate in the ERA department last year, he's still worth a back-end rotation spot in mixed fantasy leagues as he enters his sophomore season.

Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Gavin Williams (elbow) was scratched ahead of his scheduled start on Sunday. The right-hander is dealing with right elbow discomfort, so the organization is going to proceed with extreme caution. Luckily, Williams is currently considered as day-to-day, so the team doesn't believe it's a long term issue. The Guardians are likely going to ease Williams back into activities throughout the spring. Williams has been a stud this spring, so the hope is that he'll be ready to go by Opening Day.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams was scratched from his scheduled start on Sunday after feeling discomfort in his right elbow after throwing weighted balls and will not throw for a couple of days. The 24-year-old had been off to a hot start this spring with a 1.93 ERA and nine strikeouts in just 4 2/3 innings across two Cactus League outings but will be shut down for a brief period of time. Williams debuted with a 3.29 ERA across 16 starts in the 2023 season after he tossed nine starts of 2.93 ERA ball at the Triple-A level. A 2021 first-round pick, Williams has displayed quality strikeout stuff in his brief minor-league tenure and punched out 23.5% of the hitters he faced as a rookie. He remains a rock-solid fantasy asset heading into the 2024 season but fantasy managers will want to keep an eye on his status ahead of Opening Day.

Cleveland Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams was solid in his second outing of the spring on Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners. The 24-year-old yielded one earned run on four hits across his 2 2/3 innings of work but also struck out five and did not walk a batter. He now has allowed just one earned run in his 4 2/3 innings of work this spring and has also punched out a hefty nine batters in that time. Williams was stellar in his rookie season in 2023, working to a 3.29 ERA across 16 starts and 82 innings of work. However, he also posted a subpar 12.8% K-BB% and his 4.61 SIERA was well above his surface ERA. That said, Williams sports excellent fantasy value heading into his sophomore season and projects for a 3.96 ERA and a superior 14.4% K-BB% across 26 starts by ATC for the upcoming campaign.