The Mariners are about to get a close look at one of the pieces they shipped out over the winter, and Ben Williamson arrives in Tampa Bay looking like the kind of player Seattle could use right now.
Seattle dealt Williamson to the Rays as part of the February trade that brought Brendan Donovan over from St. Louis.
The Mariners paid a steep price for Donovan, sending out top prospects Jurrangelo Cijntje and Tai Peete along with Williamson. The idea was that Donovan would be the missing piece in a World Series push.
Instead, he’s appeared in only 25 games and is on the injured list for the second time.
Williamson, meanwhile, will be on the other side of that trade when the Mariners face the Rays on Friday afternoon at 3:40 p.m. PT. Seattle enters at 47-47, while Tampa Bay owns the best record in the American League.
After talking with Williamson recently on the “Refuse to Lose Territory” podcast, the takeaway was clear: he fits a need Seattle has struggled to fill this season.
That doesn’t mean the Donovan deal was the wrong swing. But losing Williamson has ended up mattering more than many expected.
The Mariners have spent the season searching for right-handed bats who can handle left-handed pitching, and the results have been rough. They’re last in baseball against lefties, and the club has already cycled through Leo Rivas, Ryan Bliss and Patrick Wisdom in that role without much success.
Williamson would have given them a different kind of option. He could have been a depth infielder, someone capable of stepping in for JP Crawford late in games if needed, and a movable piece who could handle second, short or third. He also would have given Seattle another right-handed bat with some ability to help against lefties.
He’s not a middle-of-the-order force, and the numbers back that up. Williamson has an OPS+ under 80, and his bat still profiles as below average. But the Mariners have been missing exactly the kind of utility profile he’s developing now.
For Tampa Bay, Williamson is hitting .237 with an OPS+ of 76. For Seattle, he’s the sort of roster fit that looks a lot more valuable in hindsight.
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