Williams' promotion has Rays teammates bristling with excitement

TAMPA -- Rays first baseman Bob Seymour says that shortstop Carson Williams is one of the best baseball players he has seen.

Everyone will now get a chance to see why Williams has been showered with such high praise. The Rays called up Williams, their No. 1 prospect and one of the best prospects in the game, prior to their series opener against the Cardinals.

Williams got the news of his promotion on Thursday morning from his Durham Bulls manager Morgan Ensberg. That began the start of a long day that featured multiple flights -- from Lehigh Valley, Pa., to Charlotte to Tampa -- before he arrived in the Rays' dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field during the second inning of Tampa Bay’s 7-4 loss to St. Louis.

“There's nerves, there's excitement,” Williams said after the game. “It's a whole whirlwind of emotions, and it’s all amazing.”

Taken by Tampa Bay with the 28th pick in the 2021 Draft, Williams is expected to get significant playing time at shortstop as the Rays are currently without injured infielder Taylor Walls, and they placed shortstop Ha-Seong Kim on the injured list with low back inflammation in a corresponding move.

“I’m just so excited for [Williams],” said Seymour, who was drafted by the Rays in the 13th round in ‘21. “He's going to do great.”

The 22-year-old Williams can impact the game in myriad ways. His defensive ability at a premium position has earned him a Minor League Gold Glove. Williams complements his defense with plus power and speed, and he has reached the 20-homer, 20-steal plateau in three consecutive years. He’ll come to the Rays after recording 23 home runs and 22 stolen bases with Triple-A Durham, making him the only player to go 20/20 at that level so far this season.

“At his best, he could be an MVP, All-Star-caliber player, in my opinion,” said outfielder Chandler Simpson, who has been teammates with Williams at multiple levels in the Minors dating back to their time at High-A Bowling Green in 2023. “... He’s got all the tools."

But this season hasn’t been a smooth ride for the toolsy San Diego native. Williams struggled out of the gate, producing a 173/.277/.341 slash line and a 61 wRC+ in his first 51 games through the end of May. But he believes that stretch may have ultimately benefited him.

“I would say the adjustment to Triple-A, those first two months were rough,” he said. “You can't sugarcoat that; they were rough. But being around really good teammates and just kind of finding my way with pitch selection and just stacking good at-bats, I felt like I got back to being Carson Williams towards the end. I was glad I could make it through something like that and keep pushing.”

That push has led to Williams punishing pitches. Williams has slashed .248/.352/.538 with 17 homers in 60 games since the start of June, good for a 129 wRC+. Five of those homers have come in his past 10 games, including a projected 429-foot dinger to the opposite field on Wednesday.

Williams’ power does come with a lot of swing and miss. He has struck out 154 times in 451 plate appearances, a 34.2 percent K rate that is the third highest among Triple-A qualifiers in 2025. His 38.7 percent whiff rate is the highest among Triple-A batters with at least 400 plate appearances.

That is one of the reasons why Williams, who is MLB Pipeline’s No. 47 prospect, has seen his stock sag since the spring, when he was Pipeline’s No. 9 overall prospect.

Though Williams' strikeout rate is a concern, observers believe it will decrease with better swing decisions, allowing his fast, violent swing to drive more balls in the air. And he has proven he already knows how to work his way through slumps.

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“The pressure that rightfully he put on himself, and the pressure that everybody else put on him coming into [Spring Training] and being ‘the guy’ and being the big prospect, I think he's handled it really, really well,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said of Williams.

Beyond his special skills on the diamond, Williams draws a lot of plaudits for being a high-quality teammate, someone who openly cares about the game and is easy to talk to in the clubhouse. Simpson called him “a great friend.” Williams attributes his makeup to his mother, Colleen, and father, Greg.

“I think I was raised the right way, and I can't thank them enough for everything,” Williams said. “I think it's really important to have a good relationship with everybody you come across in this industry. I think that it's important that you love this game more than anything, because it kicks you right back most of the time. To go out and give it everything you’ve got every day, it's what it's all about.”