Rays Season Wrap-Up RaysUp
- Rays fall out of playoff contention but improve draft position
- Phillies clinch NL East; Brewers, Dodgers, Blue Jays all in tight division races
- Glass-half-full outlook as younger players gain valuable experience under pressure
- Spotlight on Montgomery Biscuits in the Southern League playoffs
- Homer Bush Jr., Ledbetter, Brody Hopkins, Will Simpson, and TJ Nichols
- Rays and Brewers’ player development approaches
- Rays’ history of sending prospects to Australia’s Perth Heat
- New Perth Heat manager Perry Roth, formerly with the River Dogs & Hot Rods
- Rays who benefited from ABL: Kiermaier, Caminero, Brosseau
- Electric Puerto Rican Heritage Night atmosphere
- Surrounded by Blue Jays fans behind Visitors’ dugout
- Ease of parking and access t
- Spotting Kevin Kiermaier
- Rays co-presidents, Auld & Silverman moving into advisory roles
- Rob Manfred’s “clean slate” for the stadium hunt
- Evaluating Erik Neander’s tenure and future
- Erik could lead the Rays to their first World Series
- Yandy Díaz’s consistent excellence
- Balancing young talent - Trey Morgan, Jonathan Aranda & others in the lineup
- Need to find power bats & maintaining defensive standards
- Trade for controllable players vs risky free-agent signings
- Ryan Pepiot’s recent struggles with control and late-season fatigue. Comparing his development path to Chris Archer’s early years
- Why Mat still sees Cy Young potential and a future Rays rotation core with Shane Baz and Drew Rasmussen
- Upcoming Guests - authors Lou Schiff and Jane Leavy
- CBA negotiations - baseball’s financial landscape is rapidly changing
- Reflecting on the Mets’ late-season collapse
- Blake Snell Trade Tree - Rays add Cole Wilcox to the 40-man roster
- o How Wilcox's shift from starter to reliever revived his career
- o What his AAA stats suggest about his future bullpen role
- o The winding path of Isiah Kiner-Falefa
- o Chandler Simpson’s wall-robbing catch and his underrated offensive growth
- o Finalized trade sending Jose Caballero to Yankees for Marshall Toole
- o Outfield depth rising: Brailer Guerrero, Theo Gillen, Brenner Summerhill, Colton Ledbetter, Homer Bush Jr.
- Tropicana Field & Stadium - Roof repairs progressing; turf replacement next
- o Q&A on 2007 Hillsborough County survey on stadium location and funding
- o Retractable roof debate and evolving fan expectations
- Bright Spots & Looking Ahead
- o Rays pitching pipeline: Ian Seymour, Joe Boyle, and more
- o Nick Fortes behind the plate as a key addition
- o A system stacked with talent as new ownership arrives
- Stadium & Tropicana Field Updates
- Roof repairs underway; new turf installation planned for spring training.
- 2007 Hillsborough County survey results on stadium location and funding revealed.
- League & Ownership Landscape
- Mat hints at changing financial structure and upcoming CBA negotiations
- Rays’ $1.7B sale despite uncertain stadium future shows franchise value growth.
- Fan interference stories from recent games.
- Will Bill & Ted and/or Jimmy Kimmel be future guests or are we just “Waiting for Godot”
You can find Mat at @matgermain.bsky.social or reach Mark at baseballbizondeck@gmail.com BaseballBiz on Deck, at iHeart Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, and at www.baseballbizOnDeck.com
Special Thanks to Scott Holmes for the music Stomps & Claps
