Brody Hopkins arrived in the majors this weekend against the Astros, and the early read is clear: the Rays may have something real here.
His debut showed the kind of raw weapons that can change a game in a hurry. Hopkins’ stuff was electric, and his command was better than expected. That combination has him in position to matter over the final two weeks of the regular season and, potentially, in October as an impact reliever.
The headliner is the fastball. Hopkins works from a very low release point, under five feet, and adds plus extension that makes his 100 mph heater arrive even quicker than the gun says it does.
The pitch also carries more vertical movement than hitters would expect from that slot, which gives it real life up in and above the zone. Even so, the velocity and release traits make it dangerous just about anywhere.
He backs that with a mid-90s cutting fastball that can miss bats when he elevates it and produce weak contact when he keeps it down. The best pitch in the mix is the upper-80s breaking ball, a steep, diving offering that separates from other breaking balls thrown from a similar arm slot and velocity.
There isn’t really a clean one-to-one comparison for it. Hopkins hasn’t thrown that pitch in the majors yet, but the arsenal doesn’t stop there.
He also brings a low-90s offspeed pitch with plus separation off the fastball and an upper-80s slider with a two-plane shape.
Command has been the lingering question. Hopkins didn’t begin pitching full time until he turned pro in 2024, so the development curve on that side is still pretty fresh. He also had to deal with a new baseball this season in Triple-A, and that led to some early struggles.
Things started to turn after a mechanical adjustment in June. From there, his zone and strike rates climbed steadily as the season progressed.
The Rays didn’t have room for him in the Major League rotation, though, and in mid-August they began shortening him up into a relief role. So far, he’s handled that transition well.
In his debut, Hopkins posted an above-average strike rate. The home run he allowed came on a strong swing from Isaac Paredes, who turned on triple-digits at the very top of the zone up and in.
Hopkins also landed two pitches in the zone at a 50% clip, which kept hitters from sitting back and waiting. He’s still getting a little better with every outing.
In the bullpen, his command has looked closer to average than the 30-grade command he showed earlier this season. He also looks more like the pitcher he was at Double-A Montgomery in 2025.
The adjustment to Triple-A and Major League baseball seems to be coming along. His pitch mix has been trimmed a bit, with less reliance on the offspeed pitch and more emphasis on the fastballs and that outlier breaking ball. Even with a smaller package, Hopkins could still profile as a starter down the line because all three of those pitches are elite or close to it.
For now, he’ll have a chance to help the Rays in relief as they try to make some noise in the postseason, while still keeping the door open for a return to starting beyond this season.
In Other News...
Chandler Simpson Is Becoming The Center Of A Rays Debate
Chandler Simpson has gone from a curiosity to a fixture for the Rays in 2026, handling everyday left field duties while making his glove look more and more like the real thing. His defensive jump has been hard to miss, with strong range and an 8 Defensive Runs Saved mark backing up the eye test, and Tampa Bay has clearly been willing to lean into what he does best. Offensively, the profile still looks familiar. The batting average and on-base work are tracking close to last season, and the pop still is not there, but the Rays have found other ways to squeeze value out of his speed.
What has changed is how much the team seems willing to build around that speed. Simpson is showing more sacrifice bunts, a sign that Tampa Bay is comfortable using him as a table-setter rather than asking for a power breakout that may never come. It has turned him into a useful test case for the Rays' usual creativity, and also into a bigger conversation about what his long-term role should be if the bat never develops beyond this version. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Prospects Are Starting To Separate At A Crucial Time
As the minor league season enters its final stretch, the Rays prospect picture is starting to take shape in a way that matters for the organizations next wave of decisions. Theo Gillen sits atop the system at FanGraphs, with Caden Bodine also drawing strong placement, while Aidan Cremarosa has made the most noticeable pitcher's case in Single-A, leading the system with a 2.82 ERA and a 29.8 percent strikeout rate.
The bigger backdrop is that the affiliates are all at different points in the calendar, which adds urgency to every update. Bowling Green has already fallen in the South Atlantic League playoffs, Charleston is down 1-0 in its championship series, and Montgomerys season is over, leaving the Rays to sort through who finished strongest, who is still playing meaningful games, and which names are starting to separate at exactly the right time. [Read more 🡒]
Victor Mesa Jr Is Giving Rays Fans A New October Reason To Believe
Victor Mesa Jr. keeps turning a late-season surge into something the Rays can actually hang on to as the calendar shifts toward October. The latest weekly award winners in the American and National Leagues also included Jackson Merrill and Luis Lara, but for Tampa Bay the spotlight falls on Mesa, whose stretch of production has been part of the push that helped the club clinch a playoff berth.
The timing matters because the Rays have spent much of the season trying to build a path into meaningful September baseball, and Mesa has become one of the players giving that effort some momentum. Merrill was a key piece in San Diegos winning streak, while Laras defensive work helped Milwaukee in its own playoff-clinching moment, but Mesas recent impact has left Rays fans with a fresh reason to look ahead and wonder how far this run can carry them. [Read more 🡒]