The American League Championship Series returns to Tropicana Field and with it, the Rays will bring back another of their greatest players to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game.
Earlier this season, the Rays already called on Kevin Kiermaier, Carlos Pena, and Carlos Crawford to throw out the first pitch and now they’re giving the honor to BJ Upton.
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The Rays drafted BJ Upton with the 2nd overall pick of the 2002 draft. Free Upton sped through the system and had him make his big league debut just over two years later at just 19 years old. Despite his youth, Upton showed serious potential, but his defense needed serious improvement.
Upton spent the entire 2005 season and most of the 2006 campaign in Triple-A before making his way to the big league roster to get off to a good start in 2007. With this development, Upton found a new home in center field where he showed more of his defensive elite speed and arm strength.
Over the next six seasons, Upton would be an above average player and a stellar champion. From 2007 through 2012, Upton hit .255/.338/.430 with 113 HR and 217 stolen bases, registering a 110 wRC+ and resulting in 22.7 fWAR (3.8 fWAR per season).
Upton was an integral part of the Rays’ 2008 American League pennant run, providing the team with a historically impressive performance during his career, as he tied the record for most RBI in the ALCS and hit 7 HR in the playoffs. In game two of the 2008 ALCS, it was BJ Upton who picked up a sacrifice fly and a walk that tied the streak. At the end of the 2012 season, Upton became the first player in franchise history to hit a home run.
After his departure from the Rays as a free agent following the 2012 season, Upton signed with the Atlanta Braves and eventually played for the San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays, last playing in 2017 for the minor league San Francisco Giants; Upton officially retired in 2019.
At the end of the story in 2026, Upton now ranks 5th among Rays position players all-time in fWAR, 6 homeruns, and stolen bases.