Cleveland Guardians' Gavin Williams injury setback opens the door further for Ben Lively

CLEVELAND — A lot has gone right for the Guardians this season. Pitcher health, though, is not one of them.

Shane Bieber had to undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his season and leading to a discussion about his injury in which he had to fight back tears.

Trevor Stephan, like Bieber, needed Tommy John surgery. Both are out for at least a calendar year, likely more. Sam Hentges and James Karinchak both opened the season on the injured list.

Then there's starting pitcher Gavin Williams, who not only opened the season on the injured list but now has sustained a setback in his rehab.

Manager Stephen Vogt revealed Wednesday that Williams has a right elbow impingement and will receive an anti-inflammatory injection. He'll be shut down from throwing for seven days.

Williams had been out with elbow inflammation, and experienced discomfort after a recent session throwing to live hitters.

"They're hoping that at the end of these seven days he can resume throwing and not fall too far back," Vogt said. "Just trying to cover all the bases and be as cautious as possible."

Williams, a former first-round pick, is a major piece of not only the Guardians' 2024 starting rotation, but also a key element of their future pitching plans. So far, though, he's been sidelined.

Ben Lively takes over Guardians rotation spot with Gavin Williams out

Bieber going down for the year and Williams being sidelined further opened the door for Carlos Carrasco and Ben Lively to grab hold of spots in the rotation.

Lively was signed to a one-year deal for around the league minimum, adding to the club's pitching depth. It looked likely he would contribute out of the bullpen, as long as the first five in the rotation stayed healthy. That didn't happen, so Lively will have more of a runway for a bit to pitch every fifth game.

He's off to a strong start, allowing three earned runs in 11⅓ innings with 14 strikeouts in two starts. The Guardians didn't want to count on both Carrasco and Lively making up 40 percent of their rotation, because it meant a few injuries would need to happen first, but they've pitched well to prop up a banged-up rotation.

Lively has a career 4.91 ERA and posted a 5.38 ERA with the Cincinnati Reds last year. He's a pitcher who doesn't rely on much velocity, but instead mixes speeds and pitch sequencing.

Not much has changed on that front. But, lately, it's been working. And for a Guardians team looking to contend for a division title, Carrasco and Lively are important pieces with Bieber out and Williams dealing with a setback.

"I've been the same pitcher my whole life, and I don't overpower you, but I'm going to throw it over the plate and put movement it, and, here you go," Lively said. "I'll act like I throw 100, but I don't."

The soundtrack to Lively helping out the Guardians rotation might be an odd one, though. His warm-up song this season is "Yellow Submarine," by the Beatles.

It's not normally a song heard at the ballpark. But Lively picked it for a reason.

"I don't really like pump-up songs," he said. "I get overly pumped up, I feel like. I watched a movie recently and it was just kind of funny and stuck with me, and I like it. It's funny. Who doesn't like The Beatles?"

If he keeps pitching like he has in his last two starts, the Guardians will be fine with him warming up to whatever song he'd like.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Gavin Williams injury opens Guardians rotation for Lively and Carrasco