Was drafted by the Royals out of Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, NC)...as a senior hit .532 with 14 HR and 41 RBI and was rated by Baseball America the second-best pure hitter in the 2009 draft...had committed to the University of South Carolina before signing...as a junior in 2008 went 10-0 as a pitcher to lead WCA to the North Carolina state championship.
2022
Was the longest-tenured player on the Padres' roster, the first to appear in at least one game for SD in eight consecutive seasons since Will Venable (2008-2015)... Was bothered by injuries that led to a pair of stints on the injured list, from 4/28-5/9 with a right thumb contusion and from 6/3-7/31 with right knee inflammation... Over his last 28 games of the regular season hit .295 with six doubles, six HR and 17 RBI... In 10 Postseason appearances hit .103 (3-29, solo HR, 1bb, 13k)... In the 5-3 loss at Dodger Stadium in Game 1 of the National League Division Series hit his third career Postseason home run (solo off Julio Urías), tying Manny Machado and Greg Vaughn for third-most in team playoff history behind Ken Caminiti's five HR and Jim Leyritz' four... Played 1B (25g, 23gs), 3B (1g), LF (10g, 8gs), CF (6g, 4gs) and RF (36g, 35gs)... Also made the first four pitching appearances of his Major League career (0-0, 7.36), most recently in the 11-2 loss vs LAD on 9/11... On 11/18 became a free agent after the Padres declined their contract option for the 2023 season... On 12/22 was signed by the Reds to a one-year contract through the 2023 season, with a mutual option for 2024.
2021
Played in 146 games and collected 113 hits, his most since 2017 (138)... Finished 2021 with 127 HR with the Padres, the 7th most homers by any player in Padres' uniform (chasing Ryan Klesko's 133 HR with SD)...he's one of eight Padres in club history to surpass the 100-homer mark... In 118 starts, slashed .251/.333/434 with 103 hits, 17 HR, 59 RBI and eight stolen bases...in 28 games as a sub, he hit .313 (10-for-32) with 2 2B, 1 3B, 4 RBI, 2 walks, a .353 OBP and 438 SLG...was 6-for-23 (.286) as a pinch hitter in 2021 with a .348 on-base percentage... His .333 batting average on balls in play (BABIP) led the Padres... From Aug. 1 through the end of the season, posted a .327 on-base percentage with a .434 slugging percentage... His 43 extra-base hits were his most since 2017 (62 XBH)... His 141 strikeouts were 2nd most on the team behind Fernando Tatis Jr. (153)... Finished the season as the longest-tenured Padre (since '15)...the last player before Myers to play a game for SD in 7+ consecutive seasons was Will Venable (8 seasons, 2008-15).
2020
Posted a .606 SLG, the 2nd highest by a Padre in a single season (behind Ken Caminiti's .621 in '96)...ranked 3rd on the team in HR (17), and his 13.20 AB/HR was the 3rd best mark in club history in a season, behind just Fernando Tatis Jr. (13.18 in 2020) and Greg Vaughn (11.64 in 1998)... Made 52 appearances in RF (all starts) and played in 2 games at 1B (1 start)...also made 2 appearances as the DH... Slashed 288/.353/.606 in 2020, setting career highs in SLG and OPS (.959)... Posted a 1.003 OPS @ Petco Park in 2020, hitting 11 home runs...in 2019, he had a .761 OPS @ Petco with 9 HR... His 26.1 swing and miss % was the lowest in his career, and he homered at a higher rate than in any other season (homered every 13.20 AB)... In the National League, he ranked T-4th in XBH (31), 5th in SLG (.606) and 9th in OPS (.959) and total bases (120)... Exited Game 2 of the Padres doubleheader @ SF on Sept. 25 before the 4th inning as a precaution because of a tight quad...did not play the next day and returned for the Padres final game of the season, hitting a double and a HR... In his final 17 games, hit .300 (18-for-60) with 11 XBH (4 2B, 1 3B and 6 HR), 10 runs scored, and 15 RBI... Hit .328 (21-for-64) vs. LHP with a 1.042 OPS...hit .269 (36- for-134) vs. RHP. Hit .357 with RISP (15-for-42) with 2 2B, 1 3B and 6 HR...hit .338 with 2 outs (27-for-80).
POSTSEASON: In his second-career Postseason run (first was with Tampa Bay in 2013), he hit .227 (5-for-22), starting in right field in all 6 games... Both Fernando Tatis Jr. and Myers hit their 1st and 2nd career Postseason home runs in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series vs. STL, and Manny Machado homered in the 6th, following Tatis' 1st HR...was the 2nd time in SD Postseason history in which they hit back-to-back HRs (Tony Gwynn and Greg Vaughn on Oct. 17, 1998 @ NYY)... Fernando Tatis Jr. homered in the 6th and 7th innings in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series vs. STL, and Myers homered in the 7th and 8th innings, which was the 2nd time in MLB history that teammates homered multiple times in the same Postseason game...the other time was 88 years ago exactly by NYY's Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig on October 1, 1932 in Game 3 of World Series @ CHC...was the fabled game in which Ruth called his shot in the 5th, with the game tied 4-4 and Charlie Root pitching... Myers' two-HR game on Oct. 1 vs. STL was his 1st-career Postseason multi-hit game as well as multi-HR game...also set a career high in RBI in a Postseason game (4), and it was his 9th-career multi-HR game (reg+Postseason).
2019
Played in 155 games in 2019, his most since his 155 games in 2017…set a career high in BABIP (.344) and accrued 104 hits, marking his 3rd ML campaign with 100+ hits (also: 2016 and 2017)...Ranked 2nd on the club in 2B (22), T-2nd in SB (16) and 3rd in games played (155) and BB (51)...Hit his 100th career HR on April 15 vs. COL...Had a season-high 11-game hitting streak from Aug. 31Sept. 11, batting .471 (16-for-34) with 10 RBI...As a sub, made a career-high 49 appearances (surpassing his previous 5 appearances as a sub in 2018)…slashed .294/.368/.608 with 5 HR, 9 RBI and 6 BB in that role...In 25 pinch-hit PA, he hit .217, with 3 of his 5 pinch-hit knocks going for HR...Hit .297 against fastballs with 12 HR…hit .179 vs. off speed pitches with 1 HR…hit .159 vs. breaking balls with 5 HR...Made 5 appearances in RF, 66 in CF and 98 in LF…hit .364 when he played RF, .224 when playing CF and .251 in LF...Hit .423 against COL (30-for-71) and hit .345 against SF (19-for-55)…against all other NL West teams, he hit .221… against all other opponents in 2019 (not including the Rockies and Giants), he hit .178 (55-for-309)...In 104 PA against LHP, owned a .512 SLG with a teamhigh-tying 18 BB…slugged .395 vs. RHP in 386 PA...Went 0-for-7 in 2019 with the bases loaded, his sole campaign in which he did not have at least 1 hit with the bases loaded...In SD wins, slashed .274/.347/.453…in SD losses, he slashed .206/.296/.386...Hit .312 in the final month of the season (24-for-77) with 6 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR and 12 RBI…his .312 clip in September was his highest in a full calendar month since he hit .327 in June of 2016...His 168 SO and his 7 times caught stealing were the most on the club.
2018
Appeared in 83 games and made starts at 3B (36), LF (30), RF (nine) and 1B (two)…missed 70 games across three separate 10-day DL stints...Landed on the 10-day DL on 4/4 (retro 4/3) with right arm nerve irritation and missed 15 games…reinstated from the DL on 4/20 and hit safely in four of his seven games (9-for-28, .321), including a career-high-tying four hits on 4/23 at COL, before being placed on the 10-day DL on 4/29 with a strained left oblique...Reinstated from the DL on 6/21 after missing 47 games…through his next 33 games through June and July, hit .271 with 10 doubles, one triple, eight HR, 27 RBI and 16 runs...Recorded the ninth three-HR game in franchise history on 7/7 at ARI, becoming the eighth Padre to accomplish the feat (Steve Finley did so twice in 1997)...the Padres joined the Red Sox as the only teams in 2018 with two different players who recorded threehomer games (also: INF Christian Villanueva on 4/3 vs. COL)... the Red Sox had three such games (two by Mookie Betts, one by Steve Pearce)...became the first player since 1900 to homer three times in a game which his team lost by double figures...Went on to homer in a career-high four consecutive games from 7/7-10, one of just two Padres to homer in four straight in 2018 (also: Hunter Renfroe, 8/5-9)…his six home runs in the four-game stretch were one shy of a franchise record (Nate Colbert, seven in 1972)...the last Padre to homer six times in four games was Ken Caminiti in 1995...Tied for the NL lead with 23 RBI in July (also: CHC Javier Baez and MIL Christian Yelich)...Placed on the 10-day DL on 8/4 (retro 8/3) with a left foot contusion/bone bruise and missed eight games before being reinstated on 8/13...Over his final 39 games from 8/13-9/30, slashed .229/.319/.357 with 12 doubles, two HR, nine RBI and 18 runs scored...Converted 13 of his 14 stolen base attempts…his 92.9 stolen base percentage ranked fourth among all ML players with double digit steals...Slashed .297/.357/.516 with 17 doubles, five HR, 23 RBI and 24 runs scored in 42 road games compared to a .210/.279/.376 line with eight doubles, six HR, 16 RBI and 15 runs scored in 41 home games. ...Hit .316 (18-for-57) with RISP, .269 (7-for-26) with RISP/2 out and .375 (3-for-8) with the bases loaded...Slashed .323/.406/.591 from the seventh inning on compared to a .224/.278/.384 line from innings 1-6...Posted a .296 average (29-for-98) in one-run games...Hit .303 (36-for-119) in SD wins, while hitting .223 (43-for-193) in losses...His highest batting average came against NL West opponents (.272, 49-for-180), including nine of his 11 home runs...Took advantage of first pitches and being ahead in the count, hitting .485 (16-for-33) in 0-0 counts, .316 (6-for-19) in 1-0 counts, .500 (9-for-18) in 2-1 counts, .667 (2-for-3) in 3-0 counts and .400 (2-for-5) in 3-1 counts.
2017
Led SD in nearly every offensive category, ranking first in games played (155), at-bats (567), runs scored (80), hits (138), doubles (29), home runs (30), RBI (74), walks (70) and stolen bases (20)... Became just the second Padre to record multiple seasons with at least 25 home runs and 20 stolen bases, joining Ryan Klesko who accomplished the feat in 2000 and 2001... His 20 stolen bases in 2017 led all MLB first basemen and his 48 stolen bases since the start of the 2016 season rank second, behind only Paul Goldschmidt's 50 swipes... Among all MLB first basemen since the start of 2016, he ranks tied for third in triples (seven), fourth in at-bats (1,166), tied for fifth in games played (312) and runs scored (179), tied for seventh in RBI (168) and extra base hits (120), eighth in doubles (58), total bases (539) and walks (138), tied for eighth in home runs (58) and 10th in hits (293) and multi-hit games (80)... On 4/11 at COL, he hit a single, a double, a home run and a triple in that order to account for the second cycle in team history in the club's 7,660th all-time game…it was his first career cycle as he had fallen a triple shy of the cycle on seven separate occasions in his career (ELIAS)... The cycle was the 313th in Major League history, the first of the 2017 MLB season and the eighth by an opponent in Coors Field history...it was the 15th total cycle at Coors Field since the park opened in 1995 and the most recent since former Padre Matt Kemp on 8/14/15 in the club's 7,444th all-time game... There were only three cycles in between Myers' and Kemp's in all of MLB… in between Kemp's and Myers' cycles, there were 215 games played by the Friars and a Padre had fallen one hit shy of a cycle on 23 occasions, including 22 times missing the triple…in all, prior to Myers' cycle, a Padre had fallen one hit shy of a cycle 384 times, including 280 times missing the triple (ELIAS)... Myers' fourth hit was a triple, finishing 4-for-4 at the dish with two RBI and two runs scored…the four hits also tied a career high (4x, most recently: 7/5/16 at ARI)... Enjoyed his best month of the season in April and hit .310 (35-for-113), starting all 27 games for the club and hitting safely in 22 of them…his 35 hits were the most in any month in his career and his 20 RBI tied for the second-most in any month (33 in June 2016)... Hit safely in a team-high-tying 11 straight games from 4/9-20 (also: Jose Pirela, 7/9-24), hitting .429 (18-for-42) over the streak...one-game shy of his career-high 12-game hitting streak (2x, 7/13-7/31/13 while with TB and 4/15- 27/16 with SD)... Hit safely in 12 consecutive road games from 4/4-25, matching his career high in his rookie season with TB (7/4-8/9/13)... On 4/29 at SF, he highlighted the Padres' eight-run top of the sixth inning, the most runs SD had scored in a single inning since 5/1/15 vs. COL…he led off the frame with a single and capped it off with a three-run home run, marking the second time in his career that he collected two hits in a single inning (also, 4/9/16 at COL in the top of the ninth, a home run then a single)... The following night, hit a go-ahead three-run home run in the top of the 12th inning on 4/30 at SF for his first career homer in extra innings to lead the club to the 5-2 victory... Homered in a career-high three consecutive games from 7/21-23 at SF…it was his fifth of six occasions homering in consecutive games during the '17 campaign... Swiped three bags in the fourth inning on 8/16 vs. PHI…it was the first time in his career he had three steals in a game and he became the first Padre to ever steal three bases in a single inning (ELIAS)…he was just the third first baseman since 2000 to steal three bases in a game (SD's Ryan Klesko on 5/24/01 and ARI's Paul Goldschmidt on 10/1/16)... Recorded his fifth-career multi-home run game on 9/9 at ARI in the Padres' 8-7 victory…his .320 career average at the end of 2017 against the Diamondbacks is his highest against any club with 60-or-more plate appearances and his 37 total hits at Chase Field are his most at any visiting ballpark... Hit his career-high 30th home run of the season on 9/30 vs. SF, the first Padre to hit 30-or-more home runs since Chase Headley hit 31 in 2012…he hit six home runs in nine games played at AT&T Park, which is tied with COL's Nolan Arenado's six in nine games in 2015 for the most homers by a visitor in a single season…only Brandon Belt had more homers (eight in 50 games) than Myers at AT&T in 2017.
2016
Had a career season, setting career highs in nearly every offensive category in 2016 and named to his first career National League All-Star team...Became the first Padre in team history to post a season with 25-or-more doubles, home runs and stolen bases and was one of just three in the Majors in 2016 to post those numbers, joining Mookie Betts (42 doubles, 31 homers, 26 stolen bases) and Mike Trout (32 doubles, 29 home runs and 30 stolen bases)...Per STATS, Myers is one of only three Major League first baseman (based on primary position in season) all-time to have a season with 25 doubles, home runs and stolen bases, joining Joe Carter (27 doubles, 32 home runs, 31 SB in 1987) and Jeff Bagwell who did so twice in 1997 (40 doubles, 43 home runs, 31 SB) and 1999 (35 doubles, 42 homers, 30 SB)...Earned National League All-Star honors, hitting .286 (97-for-339) with 19 doubles, two triples, 19 home runs, 60 RBI and 61 runs scored with 15 stolen bases and an .873 OPS over 87 games in the first half of the season...Myers started the game for the National League team, batting cleanup as the designated hitter and going 1-for-3 with a double in the NL's 4-2 loss to the American League...On 6/7 vs. Atlanta he hit a game-ending single to give the Padres a 4-3 win over the Braves, his second career walk-off hit and first since 8/3/13 for TB...At home he hit .306 (93-for-304) with 20 doubles, two triples, 18 homers, 58 RBI and 60 runs in 80 games, compared to .210 (62-for-295) with 10 home runs and a .633 OPS in 77 games on the road...He set Petco Park single-season records in several categories, including hits (93), home runs (18), RBI (58) and runs (60), along with a .306 average that ranked tops among all players with at least 250 at-bats in a single season in Downtown San Diego...Enjoyed his best month of the season in June when he was named National League Player of the Month after hitting .327 (32-for-98) with 10 doubles, 11 home runs, 33 RBI and 25 runs scored in 26 games...His 33 RBI in June led all Major League players, as did his 21 extra-base hits while his 75 total bases led all National League players...Against right-handed pitching he hit .258 (118-for-457) with 24 doubles, four triples, 20 home runs and 72 RBI with a .791 OPS, while hitting .261 (37-for-142) with eight home runs and an .814 OPS vs. left-handers...With runners in scoring position he hit .280 (37-for-132) with seven home runs.
2015
Played in 60 games for the Padres, missing time with two separate stints on the disabled list....Made his second career and second straight Opening Day roster, starting in center field and hitting leadoff Opening Day, 4/6 at LAD...Over his first 32 games he hit .291/.340/.493 (39-134) with five home runs, 19 RBI and 28 runs scored before landing on the 15-day DL on 5/19 (retroactive to 5/11) with left wrist tendinitis… missed 28 games before returning from the DL on 6/11....Over 23 games in the opening month, he hit .286 (28-98) with four home runs, 15 RBI and 21 runs scored, the third-most runs scored in the month of April in franchise history and most since Al Martin scored a franchise-record 25 runs inApril 2000…his 21 runs scored in April were tied for the most in Major League Baseball with St. Louis' Matt Carpenter....At the time his first injury took him down, his 28 runs scored from 4/6-5/10 were most in the Majors while his 39 hits ranked tied for ninth in the Majors and tied for third in the National League....Over a four-game streak from 4/28-5/2 he scored multiple runs in four-straight games, matching the Padres franchise record…fourth time a Padre scored multiple runs in four-straight and first since Damian Jackson in 2001 (4/5-8/01)… only others to do so were Greg Vaughn in 1998 (7/13-17/98) and Bip Roberts in 1990 (9/16-19/90)....Played in three games 6/11-13 before landing back on the 15-day DL on 6/15 (retro to 6/14) with left wrist tendinitis...Underwent surgery on 6/18 to remove a bone spur in his left wrist, performed in Scottsdale, AZ by Dr. Donald Sheridan…transferred to 60-day DL on 8/8....Missed 70 games on the DL a second time before being reinstated from the DL on 9/4....Played in 25 games from 9/4 through the end of the season, hitting .208 (16-77) with three home runs and 10 RBI....Recorded a career-high tying four RBI on 9/14 atARI, sixth four-RBI game of his career and first since 5/4/14 at NYY....Made 56 starts total, with 33 in center field, 19 at first base, three in left field and one in right field…each of his first 28 starts came in center field while 19 of his final 28 starts came at first base...Of his 56 starts, 51 came batting leadoff…in those 51 starts batting leadoff he hit .271/.343/.459 with eight home runs, 29 RBI and 40 runs scored…hit two leadoff home runs, his lone two career leadoff homers, with his first on 4/25 vs. LAD and his second on 9/14 at ARI....Overall on the season hit .350 (14-40) with runners in scoring position, including .348 (8-23) with RISP and two outs.
2014
The reigning American League Rookie of the Year was limited to 87 games due to a right wrist fracture...Was sidelined 70 games from 5/5 - 8/20…started 84 games (76 in RF, eight at DH) and made appearances at first base (two games) and center field (one game)...Made his first Opening Day roster on 3/31 vs. TOR…started in right field and went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI...Hit everywhere from first to seventh in the starting lineup during the course of the season…hit leadoff twice for the first time in his career on 5/13 at SEA and 5/21 vs. OAK...Logged his third career multi-homer game on 4/19 vs. NYY in what was his 104th career game…since 2000, he is one of four Major League players to total three multi-HR games in his first 104 career games before turning 24 years old, joining Laynce Nix, Brad Miller and Ryan Braun...From 4/28 - 5/15, hit .290/.339/.477 (31-for-107) with eight doubles, four home runs and 16 RBI in 26 games...On 5/4 at NYY, hit a three-run, inside-the-park home run off CC Sabathia…it was the first inside-the-parker in the Majors in 2014...Became the first visiting player with a grand slam and a inside-the-park HR at new Yankee Stadium…the slam came on 6/23/13, also off Sabathia...Began his career with a 13-game hitting streak at Yankee Stadium before going hitless on 9/9…per ELIAS, it was the longest streak in road games against the Yankees to begin a career since WSH Eddie Foster in 1912-13 (17 games) at Hilltop Park and the Polo Grounds...Had a two-RBI sac fly on 9/16 vs. NYY, the first two-run sac fly in Rays history scoring Evan Longoria from third base and James Loney from second base…it was the first two-run sac fly in the Majors since LAA Mike Trout on 8/10/12 vs. SEA.
2013
Named 2013 Jackie Robinson American League
Rookie of the Year by the Baseball Writers'
Association of America, earning 23 of 30 firstplace
votes…he was the third Rays player to
win the award, following Evan Longoria (2008)
and Jeremy Hellickson (2011).
Ê Won the award despite playing only 88 games
after his June 18 call-up…became the first position
player to win AL Rookie of the Year in fewer
than 100 games and the second in major
league history, joining PHI Ryan Howard (2005,
88 games).
Ê Also recognized as AL Rookie of the Year by
Sporting News, AL Outstanding Rookie in
the Players Choice Awards, Rays Oustanding
Rookie by the Tampa Bay chapter of the
BBWAA and was named to Topps All-Rookie
Team.
Ê Led AL rookies in RBI (53), go-ahead RBI (15),
doubles (23), extra-base hits (36), on-base percentage
(.354) and slugging percentage (.478)
and tied LAA J.B. Shuck for first in total bases
(160)…became the first player to lead AL rookies
in RBI in less than 90 games since DET
Hoot Evers in 1946 (33 RBI in 81 games).
Ê After his June 18 call-up, led the team in doubles,
RBI, runs scored (50), OBP (.354) and
SLG…the Rays went 56-38 (.596) after his callup,
compared to 36-33 (.522) before it.
Ê Became just the fifth rookie in the 2000s to
lead a postseason-bound team in batting (.294)
after the All-Star break…joined OAK Yoenis
2013 A.L. JACKIE ROBINSON
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR BALLOTING
1ST 2ND 3RD PTS
Wil Myers, TB 23 5 1 131
Jose Iglesias, BOS/DET 5 17 4 80
Chris Archer, TB 1 5 15 35
Dan Straily, OAK 1 2 4 15
J.B. Shuck, LAA 1 1 4
Cody Allen, CLE 2 2
Martin Perez, TEX 2 2
David Lough, KC 1 1
2014 TAMPA BAY RAYS MEDIA GUIDE
40-MAN ROSTER › WIL MYERS
154
Cespedes in 2012, STL Albert Pujols and SEA
Ichiro Suzuki in 2001 and SEA Carlos Guillen
in 2000.
Ê During the Rays 23-4 run from June 29-July 30,
he led the team with a .351 (33-for-94) average
and 18 RBI.
Ê During the Rays season-ending 14-5 surge, he
hit .310 (22-for-71) with 10 2B, 2 HR and 11 RBI.
Ê Made 68 starts in right field and DH'd 11 times…
also started 6 games in center field in August
when Desmond Jennings was on the DL.
Ê Had 2 multi-homer games: July 28 at NYY and
Sep 4 at LAA…in the latter game, he became
the first major league rookie to hit 2 HR accounting
for all his team's runs in a victory
since PIT Garrett Jones on July 17, 2009 vs. SF,
and the first rookie in Rays history to do so…
Rays won 3-1…joined Evan Longoria as the only
Rays to have multiple 2-HR games as a rookie.
Ê Hit 3 HR in 12 games at Yankee Stadium, the
first visiting player to hit 3 HR there in his rookie
season since CWS Chris Singleton in 1999.
Ê His first major league home run was a grand
slam off CC Sabathia on June 23…it made Wil
(22 years, 194 days) the fourth-youngest visiting
player to hit a grand slam at Yankee
Stadium (new or original) and the youngest
since SEA Ken Griffey Jr. in 1991…also became:
n The fourth visiting player all-time to hit a
grand slam at Yankee Stadium (new or original)
for his first major league home run, first
since DET Ricky Peters on May 27, 1980…
the others were both pitchers: WAS Camilo
Pascual on Aug 14, 1960 and DET Zeb Eaton
on July 15, 1945.
n The fifth player all-time whose first career
home run was a grand slam off a Cy Young
Award winner…oddly, three of the previous
four were pitchers: MIN Danny Valencia
(July 26, 2010 at KC off Zack Greinke), SEA
Felix Hernandez (June 23, 2008 at NYM off
Johan Santana), CHC Burt Hooton (Sep 16,
1972 at NYM off Tom Seaver) and WAS
Camilo Pascual (Aug 14, 1960 at NYY off Bob
Turley).
n The first visiting rookie to hit a grand slam
at Yankee Stadium (new or original) since
SEA Carlos Guillen on Aug 7, 2000, and the
first visiting rookie to have 3 hits and a
grand slam at Yankee Stadium since CLE
Enrique Wilson on Sep 21, 1998.
Ê Homered on June 24 off TOR Esmil Rogers,
a 422-foot blast to CF, to become the third
in Rays history to homer in his first career
plate app at Tropicana Field…he joined Terry
Shumpert (March 31, 2003 vs. BOS) and Joe
Dillon (May 30, 2009 vs. MIN)…it was the middle
of back-to-back-to-back homers with
James Loney and Sam Fuld, the second occurrence
in franchise history.
Ê In his 24 games in AL East road parks, batted
.351 (34-for-97) with 5 HR and 22 RBI.
Ê Combined for 27 HR, 110 RBI and 36 2B between
the majors and Durham in 152 games.
Ê Entered 2013 rated by Baseball America as
the No. 1 prospect, Best Power Hitter and Best
Hitter for Average in the Rays system…also
ranked the No. 4 prospect in the minor leagues
by MLB.com
2012
Acquired from the Kansas City Royals on Dec 9, 2012, as part of a seven-player trade that sent pitchers James Shields, Wade Davis and a player to be named later (INF Elliot Johnson) to the Royals for Myers and three other prospects... In 2012, became the third player ever to win the Baseball America, USA Today and Topps Minor League Player of the Year awards in the same season, joining Andruw Jones (1996) and Josh Beckett (2001)... His 37 home runs between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Omaha were the 2nd most in minor league baseball, 1 shy of 26-year-old Darin Ruf, who hit 38 for Double-A Reading (Phillies)…his 313 total bases led all minor leaguers and his 109 RBI ranked 4th...his .987 OPS was 5th among full-season minor leaguers…he was one of six minor leaguers with a .600 or better slugging pct... According to Baseball America, became one of 10 minor leaguers in the past 50 years to hit 35 or more home runs above Class-A before turning 22…only two others matched or exceeded his 37 HR: Arlo Engel (41 for Double-A El Paso in 1963) and Paul Konerko (37 for Triple-A Albuquerque in 1997)…his 37 HR were 29 more than he hit in 2011 and 23 more than he had ever hit in any of his previous three minor league seasons... Made a total of 83 starts in CF, 18 in RF and 15 at 3B... Was the second-youngest regular in the Pacific Coast League, trailing only Seattle shortstop prospect Nick Franklin (who was transferred from Double-A Jackson to Triple-A Tacoma on June 20)... Collected 2 hits and drove in 3 runs for the U.S. squad at the Futures Game in Kansas City on July 8, his second straight Futures Game appearance…three days later was selected the "Star of Stars" for the Pacific Coast League in the Triple-A All-Star Game after recording 2 hits, including a double, with 1 RBI.
2011
Wil spent the entire season with Northwest Arkansas (AA)...missed significant time with a serious laceration
on his knee and a subsequent infection ...Followed up his campaign as one of the best hitters in the Arizona Fall League, batting .360 (31-for-86) with 5
doubles, 5 triples, 4 home runs, 18 RBI and 24 runs scored in 23 games for Surprise...finished second in the league
in on-base pct. (.481), third in slugging (.674) and third in OPS (1.156)...his 20 walks tied for the league lead.
