ASU Baseball: Alika Williams drafted 37th overall by the Tampa Bay Rays

Arizona State shortstop Alika Williams has been drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays. He was taken 37th overall.

A middle infielder from the time he joined the program in 2018, Williams was nothing but steady in his three seasons at ASU. He hit .280 as a freshman, and .333 as a sophomore with four home runs, 53 RBI’s and 71 hits.

In the 2020 campaign, he started the season in somewhat of a slump before breaking out and raising his average to .250 with eight RBI’s up until the Coronavirus pandemic hit.

Defensively, Williams was also a silky smooth defender for coach Tracy Smith. After initially starting his career at second base as a freshman, Williams eventually slid over to shortstop in place of Drew Swift.

The two players swapped, and they have held down the Sun Devil middle infield ever since at their respective positions. Williams upheld a .956 fielding percentage as ASU’s everyday shortstop.

After being drafted out of Rancho Bernardo High School in the 32nd round of the 2017 MLB Draft by the New York Yankees, Williams has now moved up draft boards and he finds himself with a new opportunity to play in Tampa Bay.