BIOGRAPHY
Luke Williams was born August 9, 1996, in Park Ridge, Illinois. He is a pitcher in the MLB.
Williams was selected in the 3rd round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. He signed with the team for a $719,800 bonus and was assigned to the Gulf Coast League Phillies, where he batted .288. Williams spent the 2016 season with the Low-A Williamsport Crosscutters, slashing .220/.297/.301 with 2 home runs and 18 RBI. The next year, he played for the Single-A Lakewood BlueClaws, logging a .216/.269/.264 batting line in 115 games. In 2018, he played for the High-A Clearwater Threshers, batting .245/.319/.353 with career-highs in home runs (9) and RBI (43).
Williams spent the 2019 season with the Reading Fightin Phils of the AA Eastern League and batted .238 with 77 runs scored and 51 RBIs and 44 total extra-base hits. Williams was a non-roster invitee for the Phillies in spring training in 2020. Williams did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He played winter league for the Adelaide Giants of the Australian Baseball League. Williams was named the best overall athlete in the Phillies' minor league system going into the 2021 season and was assigned to the Class AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
On June 8, 2021, Williams was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time after returning from the Olympic Qualifiers and after posting a .352/.439/.465 batting line in 18 games for Lehigh Valley. Williams made his Major League debut the same day as a pinch hitter in the fifth inning of a 9-5 loss to the Atlanta Braves, laying down a bunt single for his first career hit and advancing to third base on a throwing error and scoring his first career run later in the inning. The following day, on June 9, 2021, Williams hit his first career home run, a two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Atlanta Braves. Williams also had a double in four at-bats in the game. Phillies pitcher Zach Eflin gave Williams the nickname "Captain America" following his walk-off home run.
