Brothers Upton: When the Younger Brother Takes Over

The Upton Brothers are two of Baseball’s Best

It typically takes years of hard work for a younger brother to finally pass his older brother in talent, but it only takes a few weeks to notice the difference. It did not take long for Justin Upton to pass his older brother Melvin Emmanuel, better known as B.J. (Bossman Junior), talent wise, and once thought of as B.J.’s little brother, these days B.J. is known as Justin’s older brother.

Both were drafted out of high school in Chesapeake, VA, and B.J. graduated high school in 2002 while Justin in 2005. Both were widely known as two of the top prospects in their classes and selected within the top two picks of their respective drafts.

B.J.’s professional career got off to a slow start but five years after being drafted after Bryan Bullington, and ahead of Prince Fielder and Zack Greinke, B.J. went wild in the 2008 playoffs against Boston.

B.J. hit four HR in seven post-season games against the mighty Bo-Sox and the Upton name was here to stay for a long time. Fantasy owners and Tampa Bay management are still holding on to the hope that B.J. can find that stroke again after a dismal 2009 campaign.

Justin was drafted as the No. 1 pick in 2005 and became the youngest player in MLB in 2007 when he came up as a 19 year old. He obviously did not belong in the minor leagues and it only took him one full season to get acclimated to big league pitching.

Last season, younger brother Justin had a monster season, hitting .300, getting on base at a .366 clip, 26 HR, 86 RBI, 20 SB, and 84 R; sheesh! Not bad for a 21 year old kid.

Both still young, B.J. will be 26 in August and Justin will turn 23 in August, a lot of progress is still to be made with the brothers. B.J. needs to make more contact and start getting on base more, while the sky is the limit for “little” brother Justin.

Still in his MLB infancy and already an All Star, Justin needs to hone a few big league skills like baserunning, defensive positioning, and even though he had a great hitting season, the kid still does not have a major league approach at the plate!

He might be younger in years but Justin is much more of a physical presence standing at 6’2” 205 lbs., while B.J. is only 170 lbs. at the same height.

B.J. has failed to live up to the expectations after his post-season HR binge (average has dropped the last three seasons and only hit .241 last year), but his brother has picked up the Upton family slack.

They both play different styles; Justin is a monster of a corner outfielder while Bossman Junior is a fleet footed center fielder, and it is a big year for both Uptons.

Joe Madden has never been the biggest fan of B.J. due to his deficiencies in center field and how he does not utilize his speed enough. Sure, he had 42 SB last season, but he hit .241 and got on base only 31% of the time, hence B.J.’s drop in the Tampa lineup. If those numbers do not improve, you could see the older Upton in another uniform by mid-season.

Justin on the other hand is not going anywhere. He will likely be the face of the Diamondback franchise as soon as Brandon Webb hits the road, which should be shortly, and after Justin tore the cover off the ball as a 21 year old last season, comparisons to Ken Griffey, Jr., are not pretentious.

It is a day most older brothers dread their entire lives, but they know it is inevitable, and it happens unexpectedly.

It is when the younger brother takes over as the better player, but what most older brothers forget is, the younger brother was made a better player by their hero, their older brother.

So for all you Justin Upton fans, do not thank Justin, thank his older brother Melvin Emmanuel, AKA B.J.

Matt Anaya
@MatAnaya
@DugoutDoctors