ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays addressed the recently created vacancy atop their amateur scouting staff Thursday by making two promotions within their baseball operations department.

The Rays promoted Chuck Ricci to the role of director of amateur scouting and David Hamlett to assistant director of amateur scouting. They will assume leadership of the group after Rob Metzler, the Rays’ former senior director of amateur scouting, left the club to become a vice president and assistant general manager with the Tigers.

“We’re lucky to have a talented amateur staff that’s prepared for greater duties, and it starts with Chuck,” Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander said in a statement. “He’s approachable, collaborative, and as a leader, he will bring out the very best in our operation.”

Ricci, 53, has spent the past nine seasons a national crosschecker for the Rays after joining the organization in October 2013. He will now be responsible for all day-to-day scouting activities within the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico to prepare Tampa Bay for the Draft, a key position for a club often built around homegrown, drafted-and-developed talent.

A former pitcher who spent 11 seasons in the Minors and made seven relief appearances for the Phillies in 1995, Ricci joined Cleveland as a mid-Atlantic region area scout in 1998, was promoted to regional crosschecker in 2000 and served as a national crosschecker from ’05-12.

Hamlett, 30, joined the Rays as a developmental scout in February 2017 after working as a video scouting intern for the Padres the previous season. He then covered the southwest region of the United States as an area scout for four seasons and served as amateur scouting coordinator for the past year. In his new role, Hamlett will assist with the day-to-day scouting activities and maintain constant communication with the club’s scouts.

“David has a wide range of talents,” Neander said. “He’s made the most of his experiences, and we’re excited to see him flourish with more responsibility.”

Metzler had led the Rays’ Draft operations since 2016. Under his watch, they selected ace Shane McClanahan with the 31st overall pick in 2018 and flooded their Minor League system with young talent despite picking later in the first round in recent years amid a run of four consecutive postseason appearances.

Nathaniel Lowe, now with the Rangers, was a 13th-round pick in 2016. Taylor Walls was a third-round choice the next season. Top Rays prospect Taj Bradley was taken four rounds after McClanahan and two rounds before Joe Ryan, who was traded to Minnesota last year for veteran slugger Nelson Cruz. Carson Williams, MLB Pipeline’s No. 81 prospect, was the Rays’ first-round pick last year.

The Rays have grown used to absorbing losses in their front office and promoting from within to replace them. Look no further than this year’s World Series for examples: Astros general manager James Click was hired away from the Rays in February 2020, and Phillies assistant GM Ani Kilambi had been with Tampa Bay from 2015-21 before leaving for Philadelphia last November.