Guardians top draft pick Jace LaViolette continues to recover from a follow-up procedure on his injured left hand.

Guardians starter Gavin Williams snapped off an 86 mph sweeper to Lawrence Butler in the first inning on Sunday, which the A’s leadoff man took for a called strike three. Turns out, that was a sign of plenty more to come.

With the trade rumors surrounding Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase, the expectation believes to be that he stays, even with Dodgers interest.

The Guardians jumped in front with a pair of early runs and Gavin Williams recorded 11 strikeouts in seven innings.

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, "The Cleveland Guardians are telling teams they plan to keep closer Emmanuel Clase, who still is under team control through 2028. He’s eligible for salary arbitration one final time in 2026, and has club options for $10 million in 2027 and 2028."

Realistically speaking, standing pat is the worst thing the Guardians can do at this point. They either need to move candidates like Emmanuel Clase, Carlos Santana and possibly even Steven Kwan to rebuild their farm system, or they must go for broke to try and make another run with 32-year-old Jose Ramirez.

CLEVELAND — The Guardians look to take the series with July 20's rubber match against the Athletics at Progressive Field. The Guardians came out of the All-Star break on a high note with a win July 18, but were then beaten badly July 19. Gavin Williams ...

The Los Angeles Dodgers need bullpen help in the worst of ways, but don't expect the Cleveland Guardians to bail them out with an Emmanuel Clase trade.