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Rays' Ben Williamson: Sitting after six straight starts
Rotowire
Williamson is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays.
Williamson will retreat to the bench after he had started in each of the Rays' last six games. Five of those starts came against left-handed pitching, so despite his recent uptick in playing time, Williamson still appears to be viewed primarily as a platoon partner for the left-handed-hitting Richie Palacios at second base.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: On bench for second straight
Rotowire
Williamson is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Guardians, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
After making five consecutive starts in the middle infield, Williamson now finds himself on the bench for the second straight game, with both absences coming while the Rays have faced right-handed pitchers. Williamson looks like he'll continue to share second base with Richie Palacios until Gavin Lux (shoulder/ankle) is cleared to return from the injured list.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Drawing fifth straight start
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Williamson will start at second base and bat seventh in Monday's game against the Guardians, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.
After going 5-for-15 with a pair of extra-base hits and a walk over the previous four contests, Williamson will stick in the starting nine for a fifth straight game. The Rays have faced three right-handed starters and two lefties during that stretch, so Williamson could be moving into more of a full-time role after having more recently been deployed in the short side of a platoon at second base with the left-handed-hitting Richie Palacios. Both Williamson and Palacios will likely see their opportunities at the keystone diminish once Gavin Lux (shoulder/ankle) is activated from the 10-day injured list.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Three-hit effort in win
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Williamson went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, two RBI and one run scored in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Twins.
Williamson provided damage late, lacing an RBI triple in the seventh inning before driving in another run with a double in the eighth. The 25-year-old has drawn back-to-back starts against righties and is in the lineup more often than not in the Rays' middle infield. On the year, he's slashing .261/.338/.362 with five doubles, one triple, 10 RBI, 13 runs scored and two steals across 78 plate appearances.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Fading into platoon role
Rotowire
Williamson will start at second base and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Reds, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.
Williamson had been on the bench for each of the last four games while the Rays faced right-handed starting pitchers, but he'll slot back into the lineup at the keystone as lefty Brandon Williamson takes the hill for the Reds. The Rays had previously been running more of a timeshare at second base through the first few weeks of the season, but Williamson since appears to have moved into the short side of a platoon at the position with the left-handed-hitting Richie Palacios.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Grabbing seat Wednesday
Rotowire
Williamson is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the White Sox.
He had two doubles and plated three runs in Tuesday's win over the White Sox, but he finds himself on the bench a day later. Williamson and Richie Palacios have shared second base for the Rays this season, and it will be Palacios handling the keystone Wednesday.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Drives in three runs Tuesday
Rotowire
Williamson went 2-for-3 with two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored during the Rays' 8-5 win over the White Sox on Tuesday.
Williamson helped give the Rays a 3-0 lead in the first inning after his sacrifice bunt brought two of his teammates home (one scored on an error), before logging RBI doubles in the third and seventh. It was his first multi-RBI game of the season and fourth game with at least two hits, with his last taking place April 3 against the Twins. Williamson has opened the season slashing .271/.340/.354 with two steals, 11 runs scored and six RBI across 54 plate appearances.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Heading to bench Sunday
Rotowire
Williamson is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees.
Williamson had started 10 of the past 11 games, but he'll take a seat Sunday while Taylor Walls and Richie Palacios form the Rays' middle-infield tandem. Once Gavin Lux (shoulder) is cleared to return from the injured list, Williamson could move into a utility role.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Remaining in starting nine
Rotowire
Williamson will start at second base and bat eighth in Monday's game against the Cubs, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.
After being activated from the injured list, Taylor Walls (oblique) will cover shortstop in the Rays' home opener, but Williamson will remain in the lineup for a seventh straight game while shifting over to the keystone. Through his first nine games with the Rays, Williamson is hitting .281, but he's not offering much aid in other categories (zero home runs, one steal, seven runs and three RBI). Even so, Williamson's slick fielding and ability to hit for contact may be enough for him to stick around in a near-everyday role in the Tampa Bay middle infield.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Idle against righty
Rotowire
Williamson is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cardinals.
The 25-year-old was part of the Opening Day lineup against lefty Matthew Liberatore, but he's been held out of the starting nine for two straight games versus right-handers. Williamson will handle the short side of a platoon at second base with Richie Palacios until the Rays get Gavin Lux (shoulder) back from the injured list.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Sitting Saturday
Rotowire
Williamson is not in Tampa Bay's starting lineup against St. Louis on Saturday.
Williamson is coming off a strong performance against the Cardinals on Thursday, when he went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. He'll be on the bench to open Saturday's game while Richie Palacios starts at second base and bats eighth.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Turning heads in camp
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Williamson has impressed manager Kevin Cash this spring with his ability to handle second base and shortstop in addition to his burgeoning power, Ryan Bass of FanDuel Sports Network Sun reports.
"The bat has really come to life," Cash said of Williamson. "He's a big, strong guy and the power has kind of showed up here. He's had some big at-bats and drives the ball well, so it looks like he can really help us." Acquired this offseason from Seattle, Williamson is hitting .375 with two home runs, two steals and a 5:4 K:BB in 36 plate appearances this spring. While the righty-hitting Williamson figures to be in the lineup against lefties, his strong spring and quality defense at multiple positions opens the door for him to find work against righties as well.
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Rays' Ben Williamson: Heading to Tampa Bay
Rotowire
The Rays acquired Williamson from the Mariners on Monday as part of a three-team trade involving the Cardinals, Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reports.
Brendan Donovan is headed to Seattle as part of the deal. Williamson is a glove-first third baseman who slashed just .253/.294/.310 with one homer in 85 regular-season games for the Mariners in 2025. He is now stuck behind Junior Caminero in Tampa Bay, so Williamson could begin the 2026 campaign at Triple-A Durham.
Williamson was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on Thursday.
Williamson had been the Mariners third baseman prior to the Eugenio Suarez acquisition, and it makes more sense for Williamson to be playing every day at Triple-A than playing sparingly in the majors. Known more for his glove than his bat, Williamson is slashing .253/.294/.310 with one home run and five steals in 85 games as a rookie.
Williamson went 1-for-4 with one RBI and one stolen base in Saturday's 7-2 win over the Angels.
Williamson has started to make a larger impact on the basepaths with three steals over his last six games. He's still not doing much else, though -- during that span, he's gone 5-for-20 (.250) with two RBI, one walk and no extra-base hits. That's right in line with his production all year, as he's batting .254 but he has a poor .598 OPS with five steals, one home run, 21 RBI and 35 runs scored as a fixture at the bottom of the Mariners' lineup.
Williamson went 2-for-3 with a stolen base in Monday's 6-0 loss to the Brewers.
Williamson had gone 0-for-8 over his previous three games, and this was just his second multi-hit effort in July. The rookie third baseman continues to earn his playing time through steady defense rather than big contributions on offense. For the season, he's slashing .259/.293/.319 with one home run, 19 RBI, 35 runs scored and three steals across 76 contests, giving him minimal upside as a contact hitter with little pop at the bottom of the order.
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Mariners' Ben Williamson: Day off Thursday
Rotowire
Williamson isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Yankees.
Williamson will take a seat Thursday after collecting a base hit in each of the first two games of the series. Miles Mastrobuoni will fill in as Seattle's third baseman and bat ninth.
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