The Rays are giving Brody Hopkins his first shot in the majors.
Before today’s game against the Astros, Tampa Bay will select the right-hander’s contract, with the club later making the move official. To clear space, the Rays optioned right-hander Alex Cook to Triple-A and designated right-hander Michael Grove for assignment.
Hopkins, a sixth-round pick by the Mariners in the 2023 draft, is now the second member of his family to reach the big leagues. His older brother, TJ, appeared in 25 games for the Reds in 2023 as an outfielder and DH. Brody has been in the Rays’ system since the 2024 trade deadline, when Seattle included him in the deal that sent Randy Arozarena to the Mariners.
The 24-year-old arrived in pro ball with some serious prospect buzz. He was on MLB Pipeline’s top-100 list earlier in the year, though he’s no longer there, and Baseball America has also pushed him down from 37th in its preseason rankings to 81st in its updated August list. His first full look at Triple-A has been uneven: over 94 innings for Durham, he posted a 5.17 ERA and a 21% walk rate.
Still, the numbers have looked a lot better since Tampa Bay moved him to the bullpen in mid-August. In nine innings of relief, Hopkins has allowed a 3.00 ERA with 16 strikeouts and only five walks across 39 batters faced.
Whether that shift sticks is another question. Hopkins showed enough as a starter in the lower minors that the Rays probably aren’t ready to shut the door on that path. For now, though, the bullpen move has opened the door to the majors, and his electric arm gives Tampa Bay a new look.
Baseball America’s scouting report put it plainly: “Hopkins has the best stuff of any Rays minor league starter, with an all-out, all-power, all-the-time approach that is quite unusual for a starting pitcher.” BA graded his curveball at 70 on the 20-80 scale, with a 65 for both his fastball and cutter and a 60 for his sweeper.
That kind of arsenal can light up a radar gun. Hopkins’ fastball sits in the upper 90s and can reach 100 mph, but the same power that makes him intriguing has also created problems. His Triple-A walk rate tells the story: all that stuff has not always stayed in the strike zone.
Even so, Tampa Bay has a long track record of squeezing value out of high-upside arms, and Hopkins now gets a chance to show what he can do in the Rays’ bullpen. At the very least, this is an opportunity for the big-league staff to get a read on him with 2027 in mind. At best, he could become a postseason weapon.
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