Overview

• Cleveland announced Monday that Williams will face Tigers ace Tarik Skubal in Tuesday’s opener at Progressive Field (1 p.m. ET on ESPN).
• The 26-year-old posted career bests in 2025 with 31 starts, a 3.06 ERA, and 173 strikeouts over 167 2/3 innings.
• After leading MLB with 57 walks before the All-Star break, he rebounded with a 2.18 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, and 78 strikeouts in 70 1/3 post-break innings.
• His final two regular-season starts came against Detroit, where he allowed two runs in 11 innings with 21 strikeouts in two Cleveland wins.
• Williams added a sinker and reintroduced a cutter during the season to diversify his fastball looks, changes manager Stephen Vogt praised.