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