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By TOM JONES, Times Staff WriterTampa Bay uses the No. 1 selection on a high schooler instead of a collegiate star.
ST. PETERSBURG - When he was 8 years old, he played against 12-year-olds. When he was 11, he played against teenagers. When he was in eighth grade, he played against high school kids.
He was that good.
"He was always playing against older guys. That's what I wanted for him," his father said. "From the time he was little, I knew he was going to be special."
Special, indeed. In fact, nearly everything about this special life was geared for one special day: Tuesday.
That's when 17-year-old Delmon Young, a power-hitting rightfielder with rich baseball bloodlines from Camarillo (Calif.) High, was the No. 1 pick of the Devil Rays in the 2003 draft.
"He's the kind of guy that you don't get out of your seat and go buy a hot dog when you know he's coming to the plate," said Cam Bonifay, the Rays director of player personnel and scouting. "You want to stay there and watch him hit."
Bonifay said the decision to take Young or Southern University second baseman Rickie Weeks was not made at the last minute as the Rays led many to believe. It was made "a couple of days ago" he said, and based on one criterion: Simply, who is the best player?
"He is one of the finest power hitters our scouts have evaluated not only this year, but over the years," Bonifay said. "He lights up your eyes."
Young has lit up the eyes of scouts from the time he was 13 and playing American Legion ball in southern California. Scouts showed up to look at other, older players. They left scrambling for information on Young, the kid brother of Detroit's Dmitri Young, who is in his eighth season.
"I think being around Dmitri all that time made me more relaxed in baseball (circles)," Delmon said. "I always felt comfortable."
That trait goes back to even before Dmitri made the big leagues, when Delmon was playing little league.
"Even when he was very small, he never got flustered in pressure situations," his father, Larry, said. "He has never been one to panic. He was always cool and calm no matter what. If you had told me years ago that one of my kids would make it to the major leagues, I would've said it was Delmon, not Dmitri. I knew Delmon had the right makeup for it."
Knowing he had a child with special talents, Larry Young flooded Delmon with baseball experiences. Delmon hung out with Dmitri in major-league clubhouses. He served as a bat boy for minor-league teams. He played in leagues in the summer and winter, attended clinics and swung a bat practically every day.
In the summer, Larry would get college players to take batting practice with 12- or 13-year-old Delmon. When Delmon was 13, Larry got him into all-star tournaments and American Legion leagues that usually comprised 17- and 18-year-olds.
Even two weeks ago, when he worked out for the Brewers, Young insisted on hitting with other major-leaguers, not separately.
"He always wants to gauge himself against older players," Larry said.
Over the years, football coaches came calling, and Delmon, 6 feet 3, 205 pounds, thought about playing. Larry advised Delmon against it, though allowed Delmon to ultimately decide to play baseball only.
It paid off.
As a junior in 2002, Young was named Baseball America's high school player of the year after hitting .542 with 17 homers and 56 RBIs. This season, Young hit .541 with seven homers and 28 RBIs in 22 games.
"I've always wanted to play in the majors, especially after seeing Dmitri there," Delmon said. "This day is probably the most exciting day of my life."
Delmon said he believed Weeks would be the first pick and he would go second to Milwaukee. The 40 or so family members (including Dmitri, whose Tigers are playing in nearby San Diego), friends and high-school teammates screamed with excitement when Delmon went No.1.
"It was like the NCAA (basketball) selection show, when they show the brackets and the team goes crazy when they see their name," Young said.
Young said he is excited about playing with Rocco Baldelli and manager Lou Piniella, whom Young referred to as "Sweet Old Lou." He said his goal is to reach the majors by the time he is 19.
The next task is signing Young, who could ask for as much as $4.6-million. The Rays might offer Young a major-league contract so they can spread the money out over several years instead of a lump-sum bonus. Negotiations could start as early as this week.
When asked if signing could be a problem, Young said, "Hopefully not."