TAMPA, Fla. — Editor's Note: The video above is a Wander Franco video from June 2021.
Sunday marked the beginning of the Major League Baseball Draft, and the Tampa Bay Rays selected two high school infielders to add to the organization.
With the 28th pick in the 2021 draft, the Rays selected Carson Williams, an 18-year-old shortstop from Torrey Pines High School near San Diego.
According to the league's official website, Williams ranked No. 41 among the MLB Pipeline's Draft prospects and fires fastballs up to 95 mph. He was awarded MVP at Perfect Game’s World Wood Bat Association World Championship last October.
Williams stands at 6-foot-2 inches weighs in at 180 pounds. He hit .495 with 11 homers, 34 steals and a .979 slugging percentage during his senior season.
Williams is quoted by the Tampa Bay Rays radio pre-and-post-game host, Neil Solondz saying that he is "ecstatic and couldn't be more happy" that Tampa Bay picked him.
Williams is joined by Cooper Kinney, an 18-year-old second baseman out of The Baylor Schools of Chattanooga, Tennessee, as the Rays' 34th pick in the 2021 Draft. Kinney is ranked 84th in MLB Pipeline's Draft Prospect and was granted the Mr. Baseball Award by the Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association along with Tennessee’s Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year award according to MLB.com.
Kinney hit .480/.539/.990 with 10 homers and 19 doubles in 31 games during his senior season. Although he committed to play at South Carolina, he told the MLB that he is 100 percent ready to go and ready to play and show what he is able to do after being drafted by Tampa Bay.
The draft will continue until Tuesday, concluding with rounds 11-20 in Denver, Colorado.
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