Top prospect already fed up with Rays

Delmon Young says he won't forget the failure to promote him when it's time to test the market.

By MARC TOPKIN
Published September 13, 2005

ST. PETERSBURG - Top prospect Delmon Young blasted the Devil Rays on Monday for being cheap and inconsiderate and said the decision to not promote him to the majors will have lasting effects on his future in the organization.

Young, who was named Baseball America 's 2005 minor-league player of the year, said he will not cooperate with Rays officials when he gets to the majors and plans to leave the team as soon as he becomes eligible for free agency, even though it will be no sooner than 2013.

"They can run the business one way - well, not actually run the business because the business ain't doing too well - they can do it one way, we can do it that way, too. When they want something from us, they can go through a long wait like we do," Young said.

"As soon as I get my time in up there I'll bounce out of there. There's no reason to stay around for the long haul. Get your six years and leave."

Young said that Rays officials, several of whom were in Durham during the final month of the minor-league season, did not have the "common courtesy" to tell him of their plans or reasons and that general manager Chuck LaMar has not returned repeated calls from his agent, Arn Tellum.

"No one's told me anything," Young said on a conference call to discuss the Baseball America award. "The only reason I knew I wasn't getting called up was that I read newspaper articles online."

But Young, who turns 20 on Wednesday, said he had a pretty good idea why he wasn't promoted after a spectacular second pro season in which he hit .315 with 26 homers, 99 RBIs and 32 steals in 136 games between Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham.

"The only thing I can think of is them being cheap," Young said. "Why not call up guys when you're 50 games out of first place and you're not going to the playoffs? ... They're so worried about saving dollars and cents, and they can't compete with no one."

If the Rays were to call up Young, or other top prospects such as B.J. Upton and Jason Hammel, they would accelerate their eligibility for salary arbitration, which can lead to huge raises, and for free agency.

Some think that for a small-market organization building toward the future, it is smart business practice to not call up young players so it can keep them, and keep them affordable, for a longer time.

LaMar, however, said in response Monday that Young was not called up because team officials felt he was tired - which Young said was not true - and they expect him to be in the majors next season.

"We think Delmon Young is one of the finest players in all of minor-league baseball and by sometime next season believe that he will begin to establish himself as an outstanding major-league player," LaMar said in a statement.

"Having said that, we saw him play the latter part of August and thought he had had enough. He had already gone from Double A to Triple A, and we thought it was time for him to go home and get ready to play winter ball if he wanted to or, if not, get ready for spring training."

The entire Rays organization may be undergoing a major overhaul, with the possibility that Stuart Sternberg soon will take over control and LaMar and manager Lou Piniella may leave, but Young said the hard feelings won't go away.

"It'll still linger," he said. "Nothing's going to change. They can clean house."

Young, the top pick in the 2003 draft, hit .336 with 20 homers, 71 RBIs and 25 stolen bases in 84 games for Montgomery and won the Southern League MVP award despite being promoted to Triple A in mid July. In 52 games at Durham he hit .285 with six homers, 28 RBIs and seven steals as the youngest player in the International League.

The rightfielder is the second Rays player to receive the prestigious award, which is given based on present and projected performance; Rocco Baldelli won in 2002.

"I did the best I could," Young said. "Tampa's going nowhere this year. They could at least call up guys that are going to be there in the future."

Young's older brother, Tigers star Dmitri, also has been critical of the Rays, last week telling mlb.com: "This is ownership worrying about dollars and cents instead of the message they're sending out to their players and the fans, especially the fans."

[Last modified September 13, 2005, 01:46:17]