 Keith Williams (SS) | OVR: 50/55 | Con: 6/7 | Gap: 7/7 | Pow: 4/4 | Eye: 5/6 | AvK: 4/6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| * | ||||||||
| Level: AAA | * | IFR | IFE | IFA | TDP | OFR | OFE | OFA |
| Age: 20 | * | 8 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 8 |
| Bats-Throws: S/R | * | --------- | --------- | --------- | --------- | --------- | --------- | |
| Height: 6'6" | * | SPD | STE | RUN | CAB | CAR | ||
| Weight: 200 | * | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Source: D54.1 | * |
ORIGIN STORY
Being raised in North College, Ohio, Keith Williams grew up a Yellow Springs fan, and idolized Lucas McNiell. “He’s why I switch hit,” Williams once said. “I wanted to be just like him.” He also started into the game at second base because that’s how Lucas did it. But the game eventually suggested he had as strong of an opportunity to play shortstop, something unusual for a guy with his 6’6” physical profile. After graduating high school, the Krill (at that time the Seattle Storm) drafted him #3 overall in the 2054 pool.
WHAT’S HAPPENED SINCE
We’re going to cut to some facts here. And those facts are that, at every level Keith Willimas has played, there have been scouts who suggested he wasn’t going to make it. Mostly it’s a physique thing. Tall, gangly teenagers don’t thrive at shortstop. They also take one look at his mechanics and say he’ll never be a real force at the plate.
Yet, Williams has thrown down some flashy numbers with both the glove and the lumber on his march through the Bikini organization, making an 8.2 ZR in Pasco AAA last season, and making as many as 4 WAR in AA.
Some are wondering if his relatively pedestrian AAA numbers (.283/.348/.585) last year, and his truly unhappy numbers in his month on the Atoll (best not printed for fear of melting Baby Bubba’s dace off) suggest he’s hit his level.
WHAT'S TO COME
At 20 years old, Williams showed he wasn’t quite ready for primetime this spring, but that doesn’t really change the timing since he wasn’t expected until 2021 anyway. The better question is whether once he arrives, he plays second base or shortstop and whether spending that month in Bikini will give him the motivation he needs to focus on making the adjustments the team needs him to make, and thereby flesh out his scout’s projections.
That, of course, is a question for the next report card.
LONG TERM PROJECTION
We still expect to see Williams in a Bikini uniform next season, though there is uncertainty. The Napolean Mellott experiment at second base is yielding uneven results, and as long as Larry Barkin is being Larry Barkin, we can expect to find Williams blocked at short.