Will Benson

26-Year-Old OutfielderOF

Cincinnati Reds AAA

2025 Stats

AVG

.000

RBI

Rest-of-Season Projections

AVG

RBI

Unlock Our Projections

2025 Fantasy Outlook

Benson is an easy player to root for, but likability doesn't pay the bills in Major League Baseball. The clock is ticking and the pressure is on after Benson struck out 40 percent of the time and posted the worst xBA among qualified hitters last season. He showed signs of growth down the stretch in 2023, but the improvements did not stick. Benson hit below .200 in four separate months of the 2024 campaign, never hitting above .220 in any month, and former Reds manager David Bell did nobody any favors by continuing to start him against righties. Still just 26, Benson is a good athlete with immense raw power, but it's unlikely that Cincinnati will put up with that level of swing and miss again in 2025. Read Past Outlooks

RANKS

Rest of Season

From Preseason

#384

ADP

League AAA

Bats L

Throws L

40 Man Yes

Height 6'5"

Weight 215

DOB 6/16/1998

Drafted 1st Rd 2016

Relegated to Louisville

OFCincinnati Reds AAA

March 15, 2025

The Reds optioned Benson to Triple-A Louisville on Saturday.

ANALYSIS
Benson had a pretty underwhelming season with the Reds in 2024, slashing .187/.274/.376 with 14 homers, 43 RBI and 16 stolen bases over 128 games. He managed to bounce back during Cactus League play, posting an .853 OPS over 30 plate appearances, though 10 of those plate appearances ended in strikeouts. He'll head to Triple-A for now, though Benson could return to Cincinnati if he gets hot or outfield depth becomes an issue.

Read More News

Batting Stats

Loading Batting Stats...

2024

2023

2022

2024 MLB Game Log

Calculate Stats Over Time

Just click on any two dates.

Scoring

FanDuel

DraftKings

Yahoo DFS

Sorare

Loading Batting Game Log...

2023 MLB Game Log

Calculate Stats Over Time

Just click on any two dates.

Scoring

FanDuel

DraftKings

Yahoo DFS

Sorare

Loading Batting Game Log...

2022 MLB Game Log

Calculate Stats Over Time

Just click on any two dates.

Scoring

FanDuel

DraftKings

Yahoo DFS

Sorare

Loading Batting Game Log...

Minor League Game Log

Calculate Stats Over Time

Just click on any two dates.

Loading Minor League Batting Game Log...

Left/Right Batting Splits

Since 2023

+68%

OPS vs RHP

2025

No Stats

2024

+29%

OPS vs RHP

2023

+135%

OPS vs RHP

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2023vs Left	.476	115	7	1	9	4	.150	.246	.230
Since 2023vs Right	.799	602	85	24	65	31	.242	.329	.470
2025vs Left	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2025vs Right	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2024vs Left	.526	71	3	1	7	3	.153	.271	.254
2024vs Right	.676	317	38	13	36	13	.194	.274	.401
2023vs Left	.400	44	4	0	2	1	.146	.205	.195
2023vs Right	.938	285	47	11	29	18	.297	.389	.549
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2023

Even Split

2025

No Stats

2024

+8%

OPS at Home

2023

+5%

OPS on Road

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2023Home	.746	342	43	17	41	13	.202	.302	.444
Since 2023Away	.748	375	49	8	33	22	.249	.328	.420
2025Home	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2025Away	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2024Home	.675	192	24	9	24	5	.178	.272	.402
2024Away	.626	196	17	5	19	11	.195	.276	.351
2023Home	.840	150	19	8	17	8	.234	.340	.500
2023Away	.882	179	32	3	14	11	.308	.385	.497
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Prospect Rankings History

Advanced Batting Stats

Loading Advanced Batting Stats...

Additional Stats

Games By Position

Defensive Stats

Loading Games Played by Position...

Loading MLB Defensive Stats...

Batted Ball Stats

Loading Batted Ball Stats...

Stats Vs Upcoming Pitchers

Want more matchup stats?

View Will Benson vs. Pitcher Stats

Loading Matchup Stats...

Reds Depth Chart

Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.

Subscribe Now

Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Will Benson See More

NL FAAB Factor: Waiver Pickups of the Week

13 days ago

Jan Levine kicks off the column for 2025 and examines all the NL positional battles.

The Z Files: The Wisdom of Crowds and ATC Projections

38 days ago

Todd Zola explains how projected playing time and a skills-based approach helps him identify upside plays late in a draft, as well as leading him to put Aaron Judge at the top of his personal rankings.

Collette Calls: 2025 NL West Bold Predictions

59 days ago

The final set of bold predictions includes a pick for NL Cy Young as well as a player who could follow in Brent Rooker's footsteps.

Lineup Lowdown: National League

186 days ago

Ozzie Albies has temporarily given up switch hitting after returning from a broken left hand, but he's Atlanta's No. 2 hitter against both righties and lefties nonetheless.

The Z Files: What It Takes

207 days ago

Todd Zola provides some data to help you determine whether even Aaron Judge is capable of slugging your team into contention over the season's final stretch.

Past Fantasy Outlooks

2024

2023

2020

2018

2017

Something clicked for Benson during his five-week stint in the minors in April and May. A first-round pick in 2016, he made changes to cut down on his whiffs in 2022, but it wasn't enough to convince Cleveland as the Guardians traded traded him across state to Cincinnati just before spring training. While those aforementioned changes did not pay immediate dividends at the major-league level, Benson put everything together with Triple-A Louisville and would go on to be one of the Reds' best hitters over the final four months of the season. From May 30 on, Benson hit .296/.389/.542 with 34 extra-base hits -- including eight triples -- to go along with 19 steals in 22 attempts. It was a remarkable turnaround, but Benson is a strict platoon player for manager David Bell and the stickiness of his plate-skill improvements is still in question. The 25-year-old had over 300 plate appearances following his return to the majors, but that's not enough of a sample to draw any definitive conclusions.

Benson made his major-league debut in 2022, but he was limited to a reserve role for much of his time with the Guardians. A lackluster .182/.250/.200 slash line over 61 plate appearances contributed to his minimal playing time, as did the Guardians' fairly steady outfield. That lineup logjam won't clear to begin 2023, so Benson is going to have to earn his at-bats. His work in the minors -- .275/.424/.516 slash line, 17 home runs, 16 stolen bases in 89 Triple-A games last year -- is encouraging. He's got the potential to be a useful power/speed threat, but he probably won't hit all that consistently. If his glove is good enough, he could at least challenge Myles Straw for playing time in center field, where Benson would have the platoon advantage.

Benson hit .180 at Low-A in 2018 and hit .189 at High-A to close out 2019. In between, he slashed .272/.371/.604 with a 172 wRC+ as a 20-year-old at Low-A. He had a .332 ISO in the Midwest League, showing off his top tool -- 70-grade power. He also has at least above-average speed, racking up 27 steals on 31 attempts across the two stops. Even at his worst, Benson walks at least 12% of the time, so a high strikeout rate isn't a death sentence for him, as he proved while he was the Midwest League's best hitter in the first half last year (30.1 K%). The last time he repeated a level, he took that league by storm. He will try to reprise that feat this year in the Carolina League. Of all the tooled-up outfield prospects who probably won't hit enough to be big-league regulars, Benson may have the highest upside, and unlike many, his tools have actually showed up in games above rookie ball.

Nothing has changed regarding Benson's ceiling, which is still among the highest in the minors. He fell to the Indians with the No. 14 pick in 2016 because of widespread concerns about his hit tool, and so far those concerns have been validated. Consider, however, that he hit .238 and struck out 33.9 percent of the time and was still the fifth best hitter (146 wRC+) in the New York-Penn League. This speaks to his prodigious raw power (he led the league with 10 home runs and a .238 ISO) and his patience (13.1 percent walk rate). He was also the youngest hitter in the league, and won't turn 20 until June. Benson is a good runner for his size (6-foot-5, 225 pounds), but he is unlikely to be much of a threat on the bases when he reaches the majors. Even when he is struggling, he demonstrates good body language and reportedly has an excellent work ethic, so there are reasons to believe that this is a player who will continue to improve each season.

One could argue Benson has the most upside from the entire 2016 draft class. The potential for plus-plus power and average speed was enough for the Indians to pop him with the No. 14 pick, despite significant questions about his hit tool. Benson is a 6-foot-5, 225-pound giant of a man, and yet he is barely a man -- he will not turn 19 until June. It is possible, however, that the physical dimensions that make his power potential so intriguing will also prevent him from ever actualizing that power against upper-level pitching. His long levers and musclebound upper body currently prevent him from making consistent contact. He hit .209 and struck out 32.6 percent of the time in the Arizona League, but was still an above-average hitter (112 wRC+) thanks to his power (.215 ISO) and patience (12 percent walk rate). Benson is a lottery ticket, plain and simple. It is unlikely that he will reach the majors before 2021, even under the best circumstances.

More Fantasy News

Could open in minors

OFCincinnati Reds AAA

February 22, 2025

Benson was not part of Cincinnati's Opening Day roster projection compiled by C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic.