Biography
William Buchanan Benson (born June 16, 1998) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Cleveland Guardians.
Career
Cleveland Indians / Guardians
The Cleveland Indians selected Benson in the first round, with the 14th overall selection, of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft out of The Westminster Schools in Atlanta, Georgia. He was committed to attend Duke University to play college baseball for the Duke Blue Devils, but instead chose to sign with the Indians for a $2.5 million signing bonus.
Benson made his professional debut in 2016 with the Rookie-level Arizona League Indians where he posted a .209 batting average with six home runs and 27 runs batted in during 44 games. In 2017, he played for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers of the Low-A New York–Penn League where he batted .238 with ten home runs and 36 runs batted in during 56 games, and in 2018, he played with the Lake County Captains of the Single-A South Atlantic League, hitting .180 with 22 home runs and 58 runs batted in during 123 games. He returned to Lake County to begin 2019. On April 18, 2019, he hit four home runs in one game. Benson was promoted to the Lynchburg Hillcats of the High-A Carolina League in June after hitting .272 with 18 home runs and 55 runs batted in during 62 games with Lake County. Over 61 games in Lynchburg, he batted .189 with four home runs and 23 runs batted in.
In July 2020, Benson signed on to play for Team Texas of the Constellation Energy League (a makeshift four-team independent league created as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic) for the 2020 season. To begin the 2021 season, he was assigned to the Akron RubberDucks of the Double-A Northeast. In Triple-A in 2022, Benson batted .279 in 89 games.
The Guardians selected Benson's contract on August 1, 2022. On August 10, Benson collected his first career hit, an RBI single off of Drew Hutchison of the Detroit Tigers. He batted .182 and struck out 19 times in 61 plate appearances.
Cincinnati Reds
Benson was traded to the Cincinnati Reds on February 8, 2023, in exchange for minor league outfielder Justin Boyd and Steve Hajjar. He began the 2023 season with the Reds but was demoted to the Louisville Bats after getting one hit in eight games. On June 7, Benson hit his first home run as a Red, and of his career, which was a walk-off to win the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He played in 108 games for the Reds, batting .275/.365/.498 with 11 home runs, 31 RBI, and 19 stolen bases.
Benson made 128 appearances for Cincinnati during the 2024 campaign, slashing .187/.274/.376 with 14 home runs, 43 RBI, and 16 stolen bases.
Benson was optioned to Triple-A Louisville to begin the 2025 season.