B.J. Upton, 2B, Tampa Bay Devil Rays

April 6, 2007 @ 16:00:00

By David Wysocki
Edited by Steve Ungrey

Author Jim Goodwin once said, "The impossible is often the untried." Apparently the Tampa Bay Devil Rays favor this ideology as they decided to demote second baseman Jorge Cantu to Triple-A Durham just two seasons removed from a 28-home run, 117-RBI campaign to make room for budding prospect and new second baseman B.J. Upton.

Table: B.J. Upton's Minor League/Major League numbers

Year	Level	Team	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OPS
2003	A	Charles-SC	384	70	7	46	38	.302	.839
2003	AA	Orlando	105	14	1	16	2	.276	.757
2004	AA	Montgomery	104	21	2	15	3	.327	.878
2004	AAA	Durham	264	65	12	36	17	.311	.930
2004	MLB	Tampa Bay	159	19	4	12	4	.258	.733
2005	AAA	Durham	545	98	18	74	44	.303	.882
2006	AAA	Durham	398	72	8	31	46	.269	.768
2006	MLB	Tampa Bay	175	20	1	10	11	.246	.593

 The Positives

Upton has been one of baseball's top prospects since he was drafted as the second overall pick in 2002 out of high school. He possesses great speed and a potential for some power. He has been shuffled around at many positions to try and find a spot for him. With all the great Devil Rays prospects shooting up through the system, he saw his position change from shortstop to third base, to outfield, and finally to second base.

The 6-foot-3, 22-year-old blew out of the gates against starting pitcher Carl Pavano and the New York Yankees on Opening Day of the 2007 season, going 2-4 with a run, an RBI and a stolen base. With all the great young talent in this Devil Rays lineup such as outfielders Delmon Young, Rocco Baldelli and Elijah Dukes, and infielders like shortstop Ben Zobrist and third baseman Akinori Iwamura, the Rays seem to have their bats all lined up for years. Of course their best overall player and former All-Star, outfielder Carl Crawford, is only 26 and, hopefully for Devil Rays fans, will be at the top or middle of that lineup for years to come.

Upton's numbers in the minors were not fantastic, but he is seen as a very polished hitter for his age. When he made his major league debut in 2004, he was rated as the second best prospect by Baseball America. In the better part of four seasons in the minor leagues (2002-2006), Upton racked up a .296 batting average, an .847 OPS, and swiped 150 bags in 1,800 at bats. His highest stolen base total was last season when he ripped off 46 in just 106 games.

Negatives

Upton has struggled in the power department. His swing doesn't seem to be as polished as many previously thought and he strikes out in large handfuls. His patience has been noted as a huge problem as he went down on strikes 421 times while walking just 271 times in his minor-league career. In his brief major-league experience the numbers are worse with 86 strikeouts to 28 walks. Upton is young, however, and he has still hit around .300.

Upton's leather has also come into question. At Durham in 2005, Upton committed 53 errors playing shortstop. Some have downplayed this aspect to his game, making comparisons to Derek Jeter's poor track record at similar ages.

Fantasy Outlook

Upton seems to be still growing into the ballplayer he is supposed to be. It appears he should be able to develop into a guy that can consistently hit around .290-.305. His best value will be his speed, however. Over the past two seasons he has really come into his own in that aspect of his game. We all have seen what stolen bases can do for a player's fantasy value, even without other tools (see Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim third baseman Chone Figgins and Chicago White Sox outfielder Scott Podsednik).

With the stacked Devil Rays lineup, he should be able to score a surprising amount if he is able to hold his job. All signs point to the Devil Rays sticking with him, as he made the squad despite a lousy spring. Waiting in the wings, however, are Cantu and infielder Brendan Harris. Expect Upton to get you your steals and hit near .275 with about eight home runs in 2007.

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David Wysocki

David has been a KFFL writer since 2005. He is a San Diego native and a History and Geography student at California State University-Chico. He has a writing background and has appeared in, and helped produce, various local newsletters and magazines on sports and music. He also pitched for the No. 2 nationally ranked Rancho Buena Vista Longhorns his senior year of high school in 2002.

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