Phillies: 3 Important Things to Know About Luke Williams
By Matt Rappa
2. The Phillies need depth and Luke Williams can play almost every position.
If the 2021 Phillies have proven anything so far, it is the importance of having reliable depth at every position. The Joe Girardi-led team has not been at full strength for quite some time, with right-fielder Bryce Harper, catcher J.T. Realmuto, and shortstop Didi Gregorius all missing action in recent weeks due to their respective injuries.
The team will have at least two of the three stars (Harper and Realmuto) in their lineup for the third straight game Tuesday evening, as they welcome their division-rival Atlanta Braves to Citizens Bank Park and attempt to overtake them in the standings.
In the event the Phillies need a spare outfielder or infielder, Williams could be the perfect fallback option. This season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley the Illinois native notably played second base, third base, shortstop, left field, center field, and right field. Combined, he did not commit a single error, including across 27 innings at shortstop (nine chances) and 22 innings in the outfield (six chances).
Ronald Torreyes will be the Phillies' starting shortstop for now. Joe Girardi said he'd be comfortable sticking Luke Williams at SS. There's optimism that Didi Gregorius (elbow) could begin a minors rehab later this week.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) June 8, 2021
Currently, the Phillies only have Brad Miller and Ronald Torreyes as backups to Jean Segura at second base and Alec Bohm at third base. Torreyes has received regular playing time at shortstop in place of Gregorius, however that left only second base starter Segura as his backup. In other words, the Phillies would have been extremely thin in the infield had they not promoted Williams while demoting fellow rookie Nick Maton.
It will be interesting to see if the Phillies use Williams in a utility role, or if they keep him at a single position.