Williamson averaged 92 mph on his four-seam fastball in 23 starts for the Reds last season. While getting ready to return to live action, he said his fastball was sitting at 93-95 in Arizona. The radar gun wasn’t working at Day Air Ballpark, but Williamson said his velocity felt normal on a night the Dayton Dragons beat the Great Lakes Loons 2-1.
“It’s good to get back on game reps, feel it out a little bit — feeling good,” he said.
Williamson set down the first seven Loons and struck out four, including the side in the second inning.
“The first two innings were pretty solid,” Williamson said. “Third, I don’t know if it was first time going out that many times and tired or what – just got a little sloppy. But they made some great plays behind me.”
Williamson said Yunior Garcia hit a good pitch for a double with one out in the third inning. After getting a fly ball for the second out, second baseman Sal Stewart saved a run with a diving stop on a ground ball and throw to first to get leadoff hitter Thayron Liranzo.
“That was sweet because I was getting a little tired, so I was ready to go in,” Williamson said. “That was a really good play, and he looked beyond his years when he made it.”
Next for Williamson are starts for Triple-A Louisville on Sunday in Columbus and next week in Louisville.
“Honestly, I’m not too worried about what happens after that,” Williamson said. “I just want to be healthy, I want to keep pitching at a high caliber and whatever happens, happens.”
The Reds starting rotation is healthy and pitching well. As of now there isn’t a spot for Williamson to return to the Reds. He will likely stay in Louisville unless a spot opens.
“I understand how the business works,” he said. “All I can do is pitch as good as I can, be as healthy as I can. I feel pretty free minded that whatever happens I’m OK with it. It’s out of my control.”
Williamson was 5-5 with the Reds with a 4.46 ERA in 2023 and overcame a slow start to his first season in the majors.
“When I first came up I honestly probably wasn’t as sharp as I needed to be to stay,” he said. “But luckily I got enough innings to have time to mold into a better pitcher. By the middle and end of the year, I felt pretty solid where I was.”
And Williamson doesn’t feel the setback this spring has hurt his development.
“I feel better actually now than I did last year,” he said. “I think I can execute pitches at a higher clip. That’s all it is. Can you execute your pitch?”
About the Author