Top prospect Konner Griffin will join a former Rays outfielder with his teenage debut

The Pittsburgh Pirates are calling up their top prospect and the No. 1 prospect in the MLB as he'll likely become their shortstop for the foreseeable future. The most intriguing aspect of this promotion is that the young shortstop is only 19 years old and will become the 13th teenager to make his major league debut since 2000. Bryce Harper, Juan Soto, and Mike Trout are among those 13 teenagers, but there's also a former Ray that you may have forgotten about.

As highly touted shortstop, Konner Griffin plays in his first MLB contest, we can look back at a Rays' outfielder that was also called up to the big leagues prior to his 20th birthday. In 2002, the Tampa Bay Rays drafted B.J Upton out of Greenbrier Christian Academy in Chesapeake, Virginia. The young high schooler was the second overall pick in the draft as the Devil Rays were begging for youthful talent in their fifth year as an organization. Tampa finished last in the AL East each of the first four years of their existence as they failed to win 70 games in any season. Could the older Upton brother be part of the rebuild they desperately needed?

On August 2nd, 2004, the Devil Rays fast-tracked Upton to the major leagues after he tore up the minors with a .315 AVG and 14 homers in 98 games. His MLB career began pretty smoothly, especially considering his age as Upton produced a .258 AVG and four home runs to close out his debut season.

In 2007, the 6'3 athlete broke out. At this point, the Devil Rays were working on transitioning him to the outfield as he began to show many weaknesses at second base. However, center field became an obvious home for Upton. He was a natural for tracking fly balls and the rest of his game settled into place. He hit a career-high .300 with 24 homers and 82 RBIs in his age-22 campaign and fans were beginning to take notice.

The following season, Tampa Bay made the necessary adjustment to their moniker, taking out the "devil" and spicing up the jerseys. Upton never had another year like his 2007 season, but the lanky outfielder would become famous for his postseason heroics.

The Rays made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in 2008 and rode their red-hot October all the way to the World Series. Upton was a major contributor to that unlikely run as he crushed seven home runs and drove in 16 runs throughout the playoffs. Although the Rays lost the 2008 World Series to an all-time Phillies club, that season will forever be etched in Rays' fans' minds as the year that everything turned around for their franchise.

As the 19-year-old Griffin, makes his debut, we can reminisce about our very own teenage rookie from the early 2000's.