The Tampa Bay Rays are a franchise that seems to play under the radar. Year in and year out, when we talk about the successful teams, it’s the Dodgers, Yankees, and Astros that are always mentioned.
There are a few other teams that have had steady recent success, but chances are the Rays would be omitted from that conversation. Few people realize that outside of last year, they had six consecutive winning seasons and made the playoffs five times.
They do it with young players, and that’s what keeps this team going. Right-handed pitcher Taj Bradley has been in the starting rotation all year, but Chandler Simpson has been back and forth between the Rays and Triple-A affiliate Durham for the first half of the season.
Simpson was brought back up to the Major Leagues again on June 24 while the Rays were playing in Kansas City.
“It feels great. I’m blessed to be back, and I’m glad they were able to see something in me and give me another chance,” the outfielder excitedly told MLBbro.com about being back in the Major Leagues.
Simpson’s first taste of the Major Leagues lasted six weeks from April 19 until the end of May. He was certainly producing, as his .285 batting average and 19 stolen bases at the time of the demotion would attest. The Rays felt he could be an even better player.
“Knowing game situations and working on defense,” Simpson said was his focus at Triple-A Durham during his three weeks away from the Rays. A .366 batting average with 11 stolen bases merited his return.
The 25-year-old enjoys being part of this game and definitely stays visible. “It’s another wave of African American players coming up in the game. I’m glad to see that back and get that 80’s, 90’s feel, and I hope it keeps going,” Simpson spoke about being one of the young bros in the game.
The state of Georgia has a strong representation of bros in the Major Leagues.
“We all grew up together in Atlanta and have known each other since we were young. We all knew we wanted to get to this League and make an impact on the game of baseball,” Simpson shared the reasoning why there are many young bros playing at the highest level in 2025.
“There’s not a lot of African Americans in it, we want to make a splash and that we are here to stay,” he stated. Listed at five feet 11 inches and 170 pounds, pursuing the game of baseball was an easy choice for him. “Physically, I wasn’t big enough for football and not tall enough for basketball,” Simpson stated why baseball was a better choice for him to play professionally.
Simpson is skilled enough that he can play all three outfield positions well. “Rickey Henderson, Billy Hamilton, Marquis Grissom, I love them all,” he mentioned a few of his favorite players that he watched either in games or on highlights when he first started following baseball. “I got a call about 1:30 from my Triple-A manager, Morgan Ensberg, and I thought I was late for something, maybe a meeting. He’s like no, but you do have to come to the field because you’re going to the big leagues.”
Simpson talked about the first time he was notified that he was going to Tampa with MLBDevelops on Instagram. “There are some nice perks but it’s still the pitcher, the batter, and you have to play defense, but this is the game’s highest level where everyone wants to be,” he concluded with MLBbro.com when asked about the differences in the minor leagues and Major Leagues.
Simpson and the Rays are just a game and a half behind the New York Yankees through the first 84 games of their season. With Simpson currently batting .290 along with a five-game hitting streak through Sunday, and among the league leaders in stolen bases, the Rays could not only make the playoffs again but possibly win the American League East.
