MILWAUKEE - Ben Williamson arrived at the World Series already thrilled just to be along for the ride. Then Thursday’s workout changed the trip completely.
After practice, the Rays told Williamson he would start Friday’s opener at second base, a nod to the contact-heavy style they wanted against Brewers right-hander Jacob Misiorowski. That choice meant sitting left-handed hitter Richie Palacios, and manager Kevin Cash called it “a tough” decision.
Williamson took the surprise in stride.
Before the game, he said he was “really, really excited and super grateful for the opportunity.” And when he talked about sleeping after the news broke, he said the noise around The Pfister Hotel didn’t exactly keep him up.
“Honestly, apart from the ghosts, pretty well,” Williamson said.
For Williamson, the moment fit the arc of a season that has already taken plenty of turns. The Rays traded for him just before spring training, and he had to adjust to a new team and a new job description, moving from third base with Seattle into a utility role.
“Just my whole journey overall, and I think every guy here can speak to it, you dream of this as a kid, so just to be here is kind of surreal in the first place,” Williamson said.
“But then realizing that it’s the same game and you’ve got a job to do, and just to go out there and have some fun.”
He didn’t get a hit off Misiorowski, grounding out twice, but he still made his mark in the field. Williamson helped cut down David Hamilton when he tried to stretch a double, taking a strong relay from right fielder Victor Mesa Jr. and firing to third baseman Junior Caminero.
The Rays also adjusted their pitching mix for the opener, bringing veteran Garrett Cleavinger back onto the World Series roster and removing rookie right-hander Brody Hopkins. Cash said the move came down to matching up better with Milwaukee’s left-handed bats, giving Tampa Bay a fourth lefty in the bullpen alongside Cam Booser, Ian Seymour and Steven Matz.
Cleavinger’s year was uneven, with two trips to the injured list - first for a calf strain in April and later for left forearm tightness in September. He was on the AL Division Series roster against the Yankees but didn’t pitch, then got replaced on the ALCS roster by Hopkins, who also never got into a game.
Cash said Cleavinger looked sharp in post-ALCS workouts and during a live batting practice session Wednesday, which helped swing the decision.
“I think he could play a really big role,” Cash said. “If you look at Garrett Cleavinger and what he’s done for our organization over the last couple seasons, he’s been as impactful as any reliever, certainly a left-handed reliever, in maybe the American League. He’s come in and gotten a lot of big outs for us.
“I know this season there were some injuries and stuff that went down there at the end, but he’s pitching with some confidence right now. I’d like to find a way to find him a little bit of a soft landing (early in the series), and then if he can come give us some big outs as we get deeper into this series.”
That was the only roster change the Rays made, keeping the same 14-player, 12-pitcher setup they used in the first two rounds.
Caden Bodine and Alex Cook traveled with the club to Milwaukee as taxi-squad options in case of injury. Casey Legumina and Manny Rodriguez remain available too, along with Hopkins.
The business side of the game was in the spotlight before first pitch, too. With both clubs among the bottom half of the league in payroll, the World Series came with the broader labor fight looming, and commissioner Rob Manfred used the stage to argue for a salary cap.
“I think it shows that we leave a lot on the table in some of our smaller markets by not having them have an opportunity to compete on a regular basis,” Manfred said. “The Brewers have been a well-run franchise forever.
It’s been 40 years since we’re here. Once every 40 years is not enough.”
Union executive director Bruce Meyer, who called the owners’ salary-cap proposal “a nuclear bomb,” pushed back by pointing to the Rays and Brewers as proof the system can work.
“There’s no reason whatsoever that the Pirates can’t do what the Brewers have done or what the Rays have done,” he said. “None whatsoever, right?”
Friday’s crowd was announced at 43,250. Robin Yount threw out the first pitch, while former commissioner and Brewers owner Bud Selig was introduced and watched from a golf cart. MLB said the American Family Field roof would be closed, and the game-time temperature was 58 degrees.
The Brewers also announced watch parties at American Family Field for next week’s games at the Trop, with 31,000 tickets sold for each at $15.
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