Tampa Bay Rays Shortstop Walls Sidelined with Oblique Injury

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Walls will begin the season on the injured list after suffering a right oblique injury during batting practice. The team may turn to top prospect Carson Williams to fill the position for Opening Day against St. Louis on March 26.

The Tampa Bay Rays will open the season without their starting shortstop after Taylor Walls suffered a right oblique injury that landed him on the injured list.

The 29-year-old Walls hurt himself while taking swings in the batting cage on Tuesday, with medical imaging conducted the following day. Baseball operations president Erik Neander announced Thursday that the team hasn’t established a timeline for Walls’ recovery, though he could be sidelined for up to a month.

“We’ll kind of sort through it over the next few days to determine what’s the best way to break,” Neander said.

Known more for his defensive prowess than his offensive production, Walls posted a .220 batting average last season with four home runs, 38 RBIs and 14 stolen bases across 101 games in his fifth year with Tampa Bay.

With Walls unavailable, the organization is expected to promote Carson Williams, their top-rated prospect according to MLB Pipeline, to handle shortstop duties when they face the St. Louis Cardinals on March 26 for Opening Day.

The 22-year-old Williams managed just a .172 batting average with five home runs and 12 RBIs during 32 major league appearances in 2025. His minor league performance at Triple-A Durham also showed offensive struggles, hitting .213 while contributing 23 homers, 55 RBIs and 22 stolen bases over 111 contests.

Williams remains focused on staying prepared regardless of where he’s assigned to start the season.

“I am just trying to play baseball,” Williams told reporters. “If they want me up there, that’s awesome, and I’m ready to go for them. If I go to Durham, I’m going to go put more work in and make sure I’m ready when they give me the call.”