NEW YORK (AP) 鈥 Chandler Simpson is so fast he can score from second base on an infield hit.
“He can change a game with one play like that,” New York Yankees star Aaron Judge said after the Tampa Bay rookie Sunday. 鈥淒efinitely going to get excited when I see him come up to the plate or on the bases.鈥
A day after his , the 24-year-old Simpson sped home from second on Yandy D铆az’s two-hopper to shortstop Oswald Peraza for a 5-0 lead in the fourth inning. He beat out a single on a routine grounder in the fifth and stole his sixth base in 14 games since his debut on April 19. He reached on a bunt single in the seventh.
When Simpson arrives at first base, he hears the same question over and over.
鈥淚t’s like, 鈥楧amn, dude, how鈥檚 it feel to be that fast?鈥” he recalled. “But the real common one is: ‘What pitch you going? first or second?’ I’m like: I’m not letting you know. I’m not telling you that.”
Average sprint speed in the major leagues on competitive plays is 27 feet per second, according to Statcast, and elite speed is 30 feet per second or higher. Simpson reached a speed of 31.1 when he dashed home as Peraza gloved D铆az鈥檚 grounder at the back of the dirt behind second, rolled over onto the outfield grass and allowed the ball to pop out of his glove.
Peraza grabbed it and popped to his feet, then made an off-balance throw that bounced off the mound. Simpson slid headfirst and slapped his left hand on the plate.
“It鈥檚 like the first step he鈥檚 maxed out full speed. That鈥檚 pretty impressive,鈥 Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
Simpson was signaled to hold up by third base coach Brady Williams.
鈥淚 looked back and I saw the shortstop on the ground, saw the ball on the ground, as well, and saw a little daylight,鈥 Simpson said. 鈥淪o I went ahead.鈥
An inning later, he beat Peraza’s throw on a routine grounder.
鈥淗e’s as fast as it gets,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Peraza did everything he probably could do, got to it quickly, got rid of it with something on it. He鈥檚 still able to beat it.”
A friend of Rays pitcher Taj Bradley since youth ball in Georgia, Simpson first realized his speed during races at elementary school and his neighborhood. He didn’t run track at St. Pius X Catholic High School in Atlanta because it had the same season at baseball.
Simpson says he is tied at between 3.3 and 3.4 seconds going to home to first.
鈥淛ust a God-given ability and all the work that I put in on my speed and recovery and making sure I鈥檓 ready to go,鈥 he said.
Simpson played at UAB in 2020 and ‘21, then transferred to Georgia Tech for 2022. Selected 70th overall by the Rays in the 2022 amateur draft, he signed for a $747,500 bonus.
He stole 94 bases at rookie league and two levels of Class A in 2023, 104 at High-A and Double-A last year and eight in 17 games at Triple-A Durham while hitting .301 this season before the call-up. With the Rays, Simpson is hitting .296 with four RBIs in 54 at-bats.
鈥淗e鈥檚 seeing the best pitching that he鈥檚 ever seen in his life and he鈥檚 doing more than holding his own,鈥 Cash said. 鈥淚t feels like he鈥檚 got an approach, he knows who he is as a hitter, and he鈥檚 able to go up there and repeat it multiple times.鈥
Simpson arrived in professional baseball in the first season after , cutting the distance between bases by 4 1/2 inches.
鈥淚 was ecstatic,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t’s played a big part in my success so far.鈥
Bradley has been his mentor with the Rays. He jokes he can beat Simpson in a sprint.
鈥淲e can test it,鈥 he said, laughing. 鈥淚鈥檓 not looking and the camera鈥檚 not running.鈥
Simpson wasn’t having any of that.
鈥淚 think I can have that one,鈥 he said, chuckling.
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