Meet the Rays
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
A Profile of Rays' Second Basemen
In his much-discussed interview on ESPN Radio last week, Deadspin's Will Leitch told Scott Van Pelt that more people know who Van Pelt is than know who the second baseman for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays is. Of course he's right, but that's no excuse. Because, after all, the Devil Rays are nice people too (well, except for when they're throwing bats at umpires and threatening to kill their estranged wives). One of the problems for the anonymity of the Devil Rays' second baseman is that the Rays themselves don't seem to know who he is (that and nobody outside of Tampa cares about the Rays. Actually, few people in Tampa care about the Rays). Three different D-Rays have spent time at second base this season. That makes it hard to figure out who these guys are. So, in an effort to improve the sports IQ of every baseball fan who thinks Ty Wigginton sounds like the name of the lead singer of some garage band named "The Wiggintons," here's a look at who's on second in Tampa:
B.J. Upton 6-3, 180 lbs., R/R
Upton, a 22-year-old talent from Norfolk, Virginia, started the season as the Rays' primary second baseman, was listed as such on the All Star ballot, and played 48 games at the position. Then, two things happened. One, he got hurt and was forced to miss over a third of the Rays' games in the first half of the year. Two, Elijah Dukes decided it might be a good time for attempted murder, so the Rays were forced to move Upton, a gifted athlete, to centerfield in order to fill the hole left by Dukes' extended absence. As long as Dukes continues his shenanigans, it appears Upton is the centerfielder of the future for Tampa Bay (after all, it's hard to play the outfield from jail). But since Upton is likely to spend some time at second base too, it doesn't hurt to learn more about him.
Born Melvin Emanuel Upton, his nickname "B.J." stands for "Bossman Junior," which comes from his father's high school moniker "Bossman" (his father, by the way, is now an ACC basketball referee). At Greenbriar Christian Academy in Chesapeake, Virginia, Upton excelled in pretty much everything he did on the diamond, hitting over .600 with tremendous power, stealing bases at will, and even compiling impressive pitching stats, including two no-hitters. The Rays drafted him with the second overall pick in the 2002 draft, and since that time, he has been considered one of their most promising young prospects. On July 31, 2006, not long after making some disparaging remarks about conditions in the minor-leagues and wondering aloud to USA Today why he hadn't been promoted to the big leagues sooner, Upton was finally called up from AAA Durham. He largely struggled at the plate, hitting .246 with only one home run and 10 RBIs in 50 games. In addition, the fielding problems he exhibited in the minors continued, as he made 13 errors at third base, prompting Rays' skipper Joe Maddon to try Upton's luck at second base this year. B.J. wasn't much better on the other side of second, committing 12 errors in his 48 games there, and his success so far in the outfield suggests that his move there is likely to be a permanent one.
Ty Wigginton 6-0, 200 lbs., R/R
Despite looking like a rather intimidating fellow, Wigginton is, by all accounts, a stand-up gentleman who plays the game the right way and never complains about where he hits in the lineup or plays in the field. Lately, he's been playing a lot of second base, where he has started 32 games so far this season for the Rays. It appears as though Wiggy will finish the season as the Rays' primary second baseman, with some nights at DH sprinkled in here and there.
Wigginton was drafted in 1998 by the New York Mets and was called up four years later to be a utility infielder on their 2002 squad. He served as their primary third baseman in 2003, playing in 155 games and hitting .255 with 11 homers and 71 runs batted in for a team that finished last in the N.L. East. After a two-year stint with the Pirates, Wigginton signed with the Rays prior to the 2006 season and went on to have by far his most successful year in the big leagues, hitting .275 with 24 home runs and 79 RBIs.
Originally from San Diego, Wigginton is married with two young children. He is considered one of Joe Maddon's favorite players, has his own fan group at Tropicana Field, and has befriended recent Rays acquisition Akinori Iwamura, who knew almost nothing about America before coming here from the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of the Japanese league prior to this season. Additionally, Wigginton garnered national attention when, last offseason, he delivered his second child in the walk-in bedroom closet of his house in North Carolina after his wife unexpectedly went into labor at 6 a.m. one morning. The experience landed Ty on the cover of a prominent parenting magazine and was surely the inspiration for the closet design in the master bedroom of LeBron James' new home.
Josh Wilson 6-1, 175 lbs., R/R
Remember that non-pitcher who came into a blowout loss early in June of this season and got a couple of outs? Well, that was Josh Wilson, a 26-year-old utility infielder for the Rays who has also started 13 games at second base. Wilson was acquired off waivers by Tampa Bay back in early May after struggling in limited playing time with Washington. Since his arrival in Tampa, Wilson has hit .278 in 72 at-bats. He has had the occasional clutch hit, and Joe Maddon has hinted that Wilson could be in for more time in the lineup in the near future. Until then, he will undoubtedly be known more for reaching 88 on the radar gun in that June game against the Marlins than for his production at the plate. Wilson surely isn't the best second baseman on the Rays' roster, but that night in Miami, he certainly was the best pitcher in the bullpen.
So there you have it. Now, next time you run into Scott Van Pelt at a Delaware bar, at least you'll feel better about yourself for knowing who plays second base for the Devil Rays too.
CHECK OUT THE MAIN PAGE FOR MORE DEVIL RAYS KNOWLEDGE, OR VISIT www.JOESPORTSLINE.com FOR SPORTS ODDS AND ENDS
A Profile of Rays' Second Basemen
In his much-discussed interview on ESPN Radio last week, Deadspin's Will Leitch told Scott Van Pelt that more people know who Van Pelt is than know who the second baseman for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays is. Of course he's right, but that's no excuse. Because, after all, the Devil Rays are nice people too (well, except for when they're throwing bats at umpires and threatening to kill their estranged wives). One of the problems for the anonymity of the Devil Rays' second baseman is that the Rays themselves don't seem to know who he is (that and nobody outside of Tampa cares about the Rays. Actually, few people in Tampa care about the Rays). Three different D-Rays have spent time at second base this season. That makes it hard to figure out who these guys are. So, in an effort to improve the sports IQ of every baseball fan who thinks Ty Wigginton sounds like the name of the lead singer of some garage band named "The Wiggintons," here's a look at who's on second in Tampa:
B.J. Upton 6-3, 180 lbs., R/R
Upton, a 22-year-old talent from Norfolk, Virginia, started the season as the Rays' primary second baseman, was listed as such on the All Star ballot, and played 48 games at the position. Then, two things happened. One, he got hurt and was forced to miss over a third of the Rays' games in the first half of the year. Two, Elijah Dukes decided it might be a good time for attempted murder, so the Rays were forced to move Upton, a gifted athlete, to centerfield in order to fill the hole left by Dukes' extended absence. As long as Dukes continues his shenanigans, it appears Upton is the centerfielder of the future for Tampa Bay (after all, it's hard to play the outfield from jail). But since Upton is likely to spend some time at second base too, it doesn't hurt to learn more about him.
Born Melvin Emanuel Upton, his nickname "B.J." stands for "Bossman Junior," which comes from his father's high school moniker "Bossman" (his father, by the way, is now an ACC basketball referee). At Greenbriar Christian Academy in Chesapeake, Virginia, Upton excelled in pretty much everything he did on the diamond, hitting over .600 with tremendous power, stealing bases at will, and even compiling impressive pitching stats, including two no-hitters. The Rays drafted him with the second overall pick in the 2002 draft, and since that time, he has been considered one of their most promising young prospects. On July 31, 2006, not long after making some disparaging remarks about conditions in the minor-leagues and wondering aloud to USA Today why he hadn't been promoted to the big leagues sooner, Upton was finally called up from AAA Durham. He largely struggled at the plate, hitting .246 with only one home run and 10 RBIs in 50 games. In addition, the fielding problems he exhibited in the minors continued, as he made 13 errors at third base, prompting Rays' skipper Joe Maddon to try Upton's luck at second base this year. B.J. wasn't much better on the other side of second, committing 12 errors in his 48 games there, and his success so far in the outfield suggests that his move there is likely to be a permanent one.
Ty Wigginton 6-0, 200 lbs., R/R
Despite looking like a rather intimidating fellow, Wigginton is, by all accounts, a stand-up gentleman who plays the game the right way and never complains about where he hits in the lineup or plays in the field. Lately, he's been playing a lot of second base, where he has started 32 games so far this season for the Rays. It appears as though Wiggy will finish the season as the Rays' primary second baseman, with some nights at DH sprinkled in here and there.
Wigginton was drafted in 1998 by the New York Mets and was called up four years later to be a utility infielder on their 2002 squad. He served as their primary third baseman in 2003, playing in 155 games and hitting .255 with 11 homers and 71 runs batted in for a team that finished last in the N.L. East. After a two-year stint with the Pirates, Wigginton signed with the Rays prior to the 2006 season and went on to have by far his most successful year in the big leagues, hitting .275 with 24 home runs and 79 RBIs.
Originally from San Diego, Wigginton is married with two young children. He is considered one of Joe Maddon's favorite players, has his own fan group at Tropicana Field, and has befriended recent Rays acquisition Akinori Iwamura, who knew almost nothing about America before coming here from the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of the Japanese league prior to this season. Additionally, Wigginton garnered national attention when, last offseason, he delivered his second child in the walk-in bedroom closet of his house in North Carolina after his wife unexpectedly went into labor at 6 a.m. one morning. The experience landed Ty on the cover of a prominent parenting magazine and was surely the inspiration for the closet design in the master bedroom of LeBron James' new home.
Josh Wilson 6-1, 175 lbs., R/R
Remember that non-pitcher who came into a blowout loss early in June of this season and got a couple of outs? Well, that was Josh Wilson, a 26-year-old utility infielder for the Rays who has also started 13 games at second base. Wilson was acquired off waivers by Tampa Bay back in early May after struggling in limited playing time with Washington. Since his arrival in Tampa, Wilson has hit .278 in 72 at-bats. He has had the occasional clutch hit, and Joe Maddon has hinted that Wilson could be in for more time in the lineup in the near future. Until then, he will undoubtedly be known more for reaching 88 on the radar gun in that June game against the Marlins than for his production at the plate. Wilson surely isn't the best second baseman on the Rays' roster, but that night in Miami, he certainly was the best pitcher in the bullpen.
So there you have it. Now, next time you run into Scott Van Pelt at a Delaware bar, at least you'll feel better about yourself for knowing who plays second base for the Devil Rays too.
CHECK OUT THE MAIN PAGE FOR MORE DEVIL RAYS KNOWLEDGE, OR VISIT www.JOESPORTSLINE.com FOR SPORTS ODDS AND ENDS
Mets fan here.
Ty Wigginton is awesome.
End transmission.
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Glad this was linked to Deadspin, now I know who is on 2nd. GO RAYS! They can use more fans.
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Last time I checked, Who was on first.
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I am living down in Orlando for the summer, covering the Altamonte Springs Snappers of the Florida Collegiate Summer League (floridaleague.com) and have been able to watch a lot of the D-Rays' games.
Upton is a great young talent. Never knew why they called him B.J. Now I do thanks to your article.
My favorite player on the D-Rays is Brendan Harris. He should have been an All-Star instead of Crawford.
On a side note, Harris is from a neighbor high school where I was born and raised. He's from Queensbury, and I used to live in Whitehall. Both are in Upstate, New York.
Great article and keep up the good work. If you get bored leave a comment on my blog. Here's the address: (http://www.vinyldorm.blogspot.com)
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Joe Eagleton is now the REALEST real....
....commence mailing of royalty checks.
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I should have known the Rays had a second baseman, my uncle plays 2nd base.
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Give please. Most advances in science come when a person for one reason or another is forced to change fields.
I am from Senegal and also now teach English, please tell me right I wrote the following sentence: "For today’s traveler, booking airline tickets online is a great convenience."
Thank you very much
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