Rays announce 2024 Minor League Award winners

The Tampa Bay Rays have announced the winners of their 2024 Minor League awards:

Minor League Player of the Year: Infielder Tre' Morgan

Morgan, 22, hit .324/.408/.483 (121-for-373) with 23 doubles, three triples, 10 home runs, 68 RBI, 48 walks and 20 steals in 100 games for Class-A Charleston (26G), Class-A Bowling Green (53G) and Double-A Montgomery (21G).

He hit .320 (32-for-100) with four doubles, one triple, two home runs, 11 RBI, 10 walks and nine steals with the RiverDogs before earning a May 14 promotion to Bowling Green, where he hit .371 (73-for-197) with 17 doubles, one triple, six home runs, 44 RBI, 26 walks and 10 steals. During his time with the Hot Rods, Morgan was twice named South Atlantic League Player of the Week (May 13-19 & Aug. 5-11), named Organizational Player of the Month for May and selected as a participant in the inaugural MLB Futures Skills Showcase.

Morgan was promoted to Montgomery on August 20 and immediately named Southern League Player of the Week (Aug. 19-25) after going 8-for-16 (.500) with one double, one triple, one home run and 8 RBI in his first five games with the Biscuits. He earned his second Organizational Player of the Month honor to close out August.

Morgan’s .324 batting average was eighth highest among all full-season minor leaguers. He ranked among Rays farmhands in batting average (2nd), OPS (2nd, .891), RBI (4th), runs (5th, 72), on-base percentage (5th), slugging percentage (6th) and total bases (180). Selected in the third round of the 2023 First-Year Player Draft out of Louisiana State University, Morgan is rated the Rays No. 10 prospect by MLB.com.

Minor League Pitcher of the Year: Left-handed pitcher Ian Seymour
Seymour, 25, is 9-4 with a 2.35 ERA (145.1IP, 38ER), .187 opponent average (97-for-518), 0.95 WHIP and 162 strikeouts in 27 starts between Double-A Montgomery (17GS) and Triple-A Durham (10GS). He went 5-3 with a 2.36 ERA (91.1IP, 24ER) and 99 strikeouts for the Biscuits, earning Organizational Pitcher of the Month honors for both April and May after going 4-2 with a 2.35 ERA (53.2IP, 14ER) and 70 strikeouts across 10 starts. He was named Southern League Pitcher of the Week (June 3-9) after throwing 7.0 scoreless innings on June 5 at Biloxi, allowing one hit and two walks with three strikeouts.

Since a July 23 promotion to Durham, Seymour is 4-1 with a 2.23 ERA (54.0IP, 14ER) and 63 strikeouts. He leads all Rays minor leaguers in ERA, innings, strikeouts and WHIP while ranking highly in starts (T1st), opponent average (3rd) and wins (T3rd). His 2.35 ERA is also 10th lowest among all full-season minor league pitchers. Selected in the second round of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of Virgina Tech, Seymour is rated the Rays No. 17 prospect by MLB.com.

Relief Pitcher of the Year: Right-handed pitcher Alfredo ZarragaZarraga, 23, is 4-5 with a 3.21 ERA (56.0IP, 20ER), eight saves and 75 strikeouts in 45 appearances (1 start) between Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham. He began the season with the Biscuits, going 3-4 with a 2.70 ERA (43.1IP, 13ER), eight saves and 60 strikeouts. He earned an August 13 promotion to Durham and has since made nine appearances (1 start) with the Bulls. Zarraga was acquired by the Rays from the Cubs on November 15, 2022 in exchange for infielder Miles Mastrobuoni.

Defensive Player of the Year: Infielder *Tanner Murray
*Murray, 25, appeared in 111 games for Double-A Montgomery, making starts at second base (53), third base (32), shortstop (16) and first base (3). He produced a combined .974 fielding percentage, making 11 errors in 421 chances. Murray was selected in the fourth round of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of UC Davis.

Baserunner of the Year: Outfielder *Chandler Simpson
*Simpson, 23, stole a MiLB-leading 104 bases in 121 attempts (86.0%) across 110 games between Class-A Bowling Green (32G/31SB) and Double-A Montgomery (78G/73SB). He became the third minor league player to steal 100+ bases since 2005, joining Billy Hamilton (155) and Delino DeShields (101) in 2012. The 104 steals are the most by a Tampa Bay farmhand in franchise history, surpassing his previous record of 94 steals in 2023. Prior to Simpson, Álex Sánchez held the franchise record, stealing 92 bases in 1997 with Class-A Charleston. Receiving the award for a second consecutive season, Simpson has stolen 206 bases in 238 attempts (86.6%) since being selected in Competitive Balance Round B of the 2022 First-Year Player Draft out of Georgia Tech University. He is rated the Rays No. 4 prospect by MLB.com.

Erik Walker Community Champion: Left-handed pitcher *Drew Dowd
*Named after former Rays minor league pitcher Erik Walker, who died tragically in 2006 following his first season in professional baseball, the award annually recognizes a Rays minor leaguer who exemplifies teamwork, sportsmanship and community involvement. Dowd was selected from a field that included nominees from each Rays affiliate. The Rays Baseball Foundation will make a $2,500 donation in Dowd’s name to his chosen charity. In his professional debut with Class-A Charleston, Dowd went 7-6 with a 2.85 ERA (110.2IP, 35ER) over 22 appearances (19 starts). The 22-year-old was selected in the eighth round of the 2023 First-Year Player draft out of Stanford University. Additional nominees for the award included Rob Brantly (Durham), Brock Jones (Bowling Green), Jose Perez (FCL) and Logan Workman (Montgomery).

The Rays also announced the Most Valuable Players for each of their seven affiliates:

Triple-A Durham MVP: Outfielder Kameron Misner
Misner, 26, has hit .251/.360/.449 (108-for-430) with 26 doubles, four triples, 17 home runs, 55 RBI, 70 walks and 29 steals in 110 games for the Bulls. He leads Durham in walks, runs (75) and steals while also ranking in hits (3rd), doubles (3rd), triples (T3rd) and home runs (4th). He was added to the major league roster for the first time on August 2 and made his MLB debut that night at Houston. Misner was acquired by the Rays from the Marlins on November 30, 2021 in exchange for infielder Joey Wendle.

Double-A Montgomery MVP: Infielder Carson Williams
Williams, 21, hit .256/.352/.469 (111-for-433) with 20 doubles, six triples, 20 home runs, 69 RBI, 58 walks and 33 steals in 115 games for the Biscuits. He led the Southern League in RBI and runs (83), while also ranking in triples (T1st), extra-base hits (2nd, 46), slugging percentage (2nd), total bases (2nd, 203), home runs (3rd), OPS (3rd, .821), on-base percentage (7th) and hits (7th). Williams was named Organizational Player of the Month for April and was a two-time Southern League Player of the Week winner (April 8-14 & May 13-19).

He was the only player in all of Double-A to hit 20+ home runs and steal 20+ bases and one of six players in all of MiLB to have 20+ doubles, 20+ home runs and 20+ steals, along with fellow Rays farmhand Brayden Taylor. Williams ranked among Rays minor leaguers in triples (T2nd), RBI (3rd), runs (3rd), total bases (3rd), HR (T3rd), extra-base hits (T3rd), walks (T5th), steals (7th), hits (8th) and slugging percentage (10th). Selected with the No. 28 overall pick in the 2021 First-Year Player Draft out of Torrey Pines High School (Calif.), Williams is rated the No. 4 prospect in baseball by MLB.com, while Baseball America tabs him No. 7 overall.

Class-A Bowling Green MVP: Infielder *Brayden Taylor
*Taylor, 22, hit .269/.389/.513 (85-for-316) with 25 doubles, five triples, 14 HR, 45 RBI, 61 walks and 26 steals in 84 games for the Hot Rods. He led the South Atlantic League in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS (.902) while also ranking in extra-base hits (4th, 44), runs (4th, 71), walks (T5th), doubles (6th), batting average (7th) and total bases (7th, 162).

He earned a July 30 promotion to Double-A Montgomery, playing 30 games with the Biscuits to close the season. Taylor led all Rays minor leaguers in extra-base hits (55), triples (8) and walks (76) while also ranking in total bases (2nd, 209), runs (2nd, 88), home runs (T3rd, 20), slugging percentage (4th, .493), doubles (T4th, 27), OPS (5th, .858) and RBI (9th, 62). Selected with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2023 First-Year Player Draft out of Texas Christian University, Taylor is rated the No. 47 prospect in baseball by MLB.com while Baseball America tabs him No. 56 overall.

Class-A Charleston MVP: Right-handed pitcher Gary Gill Hill
*Gill Hill, 19, went 4-4 with a 3.15 ERA (108.2IP, 38ER) and 105 strikeouts in 22 appearances (21 starts) for the RiverDogs. He was named Carolina League Pitcher of the Week (July 22-28) after throwing 6.0 scoreless innings with seven strikeouts on July 23 vs. Kannapolis. Gill Hill ranked among the Carolina League in ERA (3rd), WHIP (3rd, 1.11), innings (4th), opponent average (4th, .235) and strikeouts (T7th). He ranked among Rays minor leaguers in WHIP (6th), ERA (7th), opponent average (T9th) and starts (10). Selected in the sixth round of the 2022 First-Year Player Draft out of John F. Kennedy Catholic Preparatory School (N.Y.), Gill Hill is rated the No. 85 overall prospect in baseball by *Baseball America, while MLB.com tabs him as the No. 7 prospect in the Rays system.

Rookie-level FCL Rays MVP: Right-handed pitcher Trevor Harrison
Harrison, 19, went 2-2 with a 3.58 ERA (32.2IP, 13ER) and 39 strikeouts in eight appearances (seven starts) for the FCL Rays. He earned Florida Complex League Pitcher of the Week honors in consecutive weeks (May 20–June 2) after throwing 10.0 scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts across two starts.

He earned a July 4 promotion to Class-A Charleston, going 2-0 with a 3.15 ERA (40.0IP, 14ER) and 48 strikeouts in nine starts with the RiverDogs. He started Game 3 of the South Division Championship Series at Kannapolis and threw 5.0 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk with six strikeouts. Selected in the fifth round of the 2023 First-Year Player Draft out of J. W. Mitchell High School (Fla.), which is approximately 30 miles north of Tropicana Field, Harrison is rated the Rays No. 25 prospect by MLB.com.

Rookie-level DSL Rays MVP: Catcher Jose Tovar
Tovar, 18, hit .288/.400/.374 (40-for-139) with 10 doubles, one triple, 20 RBI and 22 walks in 42 games. He ranked among qualified DSL Rays hitters in batting average (1st), doubles (1st), hits (3rd) and walks (3rd).

Rookie-level DSL Tampa Bay MVP: Left-handed pitcher Yereny Teus
Teus, 21, went 5-2 with a 2.50 ERA (54.0IP, 15ER), .186 opponent average (35-for-188), 0.96 WHIP and 71 strikeouts in 14 appearances (12 starts). His 71 strikeouts were second most in the DSL