Brody Hopkins clocks 102 mph Wednesday, called up by Rays on Saturday

Sports admin September 12, 2026 0 Comments

Brody Hopkins clocks 102 mph Wednesday, called up by Rays on Saturday

The Rays are taking a look at another of their talented, dynamic young arms, calling up hard-throwing Brody Hopkins from Triple-A Durham for what is essentially a tryout for a spot on the postseason roster.

Hopkins, 24, was converted from starter to reliever in mid-August and has quickly adjusted to the shorter outings in the new role. On Wednesday, he averaged 100.8 mph and clocked as high as 102.1.

After going 2-8 with a 5.96 ERA and 1.89 walks plus hits per innings pitched over 19 starts, he has posted a 2.25 ERA over 12 relief outings with a 1.05 WHIP.

Manager Kevin Cash praised Hopkins for enduring through his struggles as a starter earlier in the season and for making an impressive transition to reliever.

“If it’s in the strike zone, it’s really nasty stuff,” Cash said. “He’s got balls sinking, cutting, and then I saw some highlights from his last outing – a really sharp breaking ball that’s like a 90 mph curveball. So, big stuff, and we’ll see how he transitions to to this level and see if we can get him the strike zone.

“But really happy … it was a trying season for probably four or five months for him, and give him a ton of credit for the way he didn’t sulk and get disappointed. He sat there and stayed at it. And these one-inning stints have helped.”

Both Hopkins and Ty Johnson, who was called up last week after similarly switching from starter to reliever, will get a chance to show what they can do over the final two weeks as the Rays seek to clinch the AL East title.

“When you go into postseason baseball or with the baseball we’re going to play (Saturday) and moving forward, you try to catch lightning in a bottle a little bit,” Cash said. “And I think that’s fair to say for both of them.”

Hopkins was acquired in the July 2024 trade of Randy Arozarena to the Mariners, who had drafted him in the sixth round the year before from Winthrop.

To make room for Hopkins on the active roster, the Rays optioned Alex Cook back to Durham. To create a 40-man roster spot for Hopkins, the Rays designated for assignment Michael Grove, who was signed in April as he completed recovery from shoulder surgery.

Grove made three appearances for the Rays but spent most of his season at Durham, going 1-2 with a 3.34 ERA over 23 appearances (four starts).

Junior achievements

In addition to delivering a walkoff win with his 40th homer that clinched a playoff berth for the team, Junior Caminero had a few other notable accomplishments on Friday.

He became the second youngest player to reach 40 homers twice, joining Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews, and the first Ray to hit 40 multiple times.

“That’s really impressive, but we’ve been impressed by Cami for quite some time,” Cash said. “He’s probably going to be the first Ray to do a lot of things.”

Yandy beefing up

The photo of Yandy Diaz walking through the Rays clinching celebration carrying a tomahawk steak he was clearly enjoying eating got a lot of internet attention.

Diaz wasn’t the only one who enjoyed one of the items the team chefs prepare.

Reliever Tyler Wells, looking for a Diet Coke in the clubhouse kitchen area, as he figured he’d be pitching Saturday, decided to also grab a steak.

“I was like, I should just take one of these and eat it like a lollipop,” Wells said.

He shared with reliever Casey Legumina, who then went and got another. Legumina eventually handed one off to Diaz, who decided he could eat and celebrate at the same time.

“Someone handed it to me, and I was obviously enjoying it,” Diaz said via team interpreter Kevin Vera. “I ate it in about five minutes, and it was delicious.”

Diaz said the whole night was special, so if the viral photo of him added to it, that was fine. “I wasn’t drinking beer,” he said. “I was enjoying my steak. … It was a fine cut of streak, elegant and delicious.”

Wells realized he started a thing.

“I started munching on it, and then it just kind of became a thing where some of the other guys came up and just started, like, taking bites out of it,” Wells said. “Next thing I know, Casey’s got one, Yandy’s got one. I was like, ‘All right, we started a trend.'”

Ticket time

Tickets for all potential American League Wild Card and Division Series home games will go on sale to the public Wednesday at 10 a.m.. Presale opportunities for season members, Rays Insiders and those who placed a ticket deposit for the planned new Tampa ballpark are available Tuesday. Visit raysbaseball.com/postseason.

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This story was originally published September 12, 2026 at 2:58 PM.