• Wild Florida weather playing baseball during Hurricane season.
• Shane McClanahan injury – look back at his original early playoff usage, and comparisons to Mark Prior’s career.
• Pitching depth – AAA arms, Forrest Whitley & Brian Van Belle, as possible support for the Rays’ future.
• Late season debuts can create high-stakes stress for pitchers.
• Little League World Series - Lake Mary, FL’s recent run, and the emotional intensity for young athletes.
• LLWS Youth Baseball - Maria Pepe & standout players like Mo’ne Davis, plus Tampa ties w/MLB alumni such as Gary Sheffield & Kevin Cash
• Idea for an International Little League World Series - a global youth tournament, a precursor to the World Baseball Classic model.
• Infectious energy of youth tournaments – Sportsmanship & positive crowd atmosphere at Little League events.
• Shift in team priorities – Are Rays focusing on draft positioning & long-term planning rather than immediate contention.
• Roster & trade philosophy – recent acquisitions as part of a multi-year plan and the impact of keeping top prospects in AA.
• Challenges of integrating two new catchers midseason & how that affects pitching performance.
• Rays Under 1% chance of winning World Series
• Rays’ current Home and Away stadium situations
• Sacramento (Oakland) A’s & San Francisco Giants stadium arrangements
• Giants benefiting from increased Bay Area market control & high rental fees to A’s
• MLB expansion - Vegas, an underrated but now proven sports market
• NHL success paving the way for baseball in new markets
• Utah seen as a strong future expansion candidate for travel and regional market benefits
• Nashville and Vancouver possible expansion cities
• Rays’ draft and prospect rankings concerns
• Confusion over MLB Pipeline ranking Rays 2nd preseason but 10th after a top-3 draft
• Inconsistent prospect evaluations & bias toward “hot” names
• Promotion of draft picks Brendan Summerhill and Quinn Irons to Charleston
• Angel Mateo promoted to A+ level for playoff run
• All affiliates above .500 but only one likely playoff team
• Overview of minor league playoff structure
• Notable performances: Tre Morgan (Durham), Bob Seymour’s 30th HR in AA
• Lakeland Flying Tigers vs. Bradenton Marauders game rained out
• Southpaw mascot birthday
• Value of watching player development at minor league and complex levels
• Challenges in Rays hitter development
• Mat highlights progress of Nathan Flewelling in Charleston
• Concerns that high-end draft picks not performing to potential
• Rays excel in developing Latin American players, often via Winter Leagues
• Call to send drafted players to winter ball or overseas leagues for additional reps
• Experienced college should begin in Double-A (e.g., Summerhill in Low-A)
• Challenging players at higher levels earlier to accelerate development
• Comparison to other MLB clubs (White Sox, Angels, Marlins) as they promote strong prospects quickly through their farm system
• Jen Pawol - makes it to Majors as first woman umpire
• The Wit & Wisdom of the invisible team of umpires
• Economics of umpiring
• NFL football announcement - Taylor Swift, new album
• Rays’ future ownership impact & potential for front office changes with new ownership
• Hopes for more aggressive player development & roster experimentation late in season

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

• Tampa Bay Rays turning on a dime
• Rays now 4.5 spots out of the Wild Card Swapping spots with the Angels
• Shane Baz & Mike Trout face off
• Rays getting momentum – Chris Morel after 6 SO’s hits a Home Run
• Junior Caminero 2 Home Runs
• Griffin Jax bases bases loaded & then strikes out 3
• Will Jax be a future Rays closer
• Shane Baz started strong
• September is a critical month for the Tampa Bay Rays – time to get hot
• Taj Bradley in AAA Twins
• Adrian Houser, initial outing not spectacular
• Rays are beginning to gel with new teammates
• Comparisons with Max Scherzer and Blue Jays starting anew
• Good chemistry - Rays new catcher, Hunter Feduccia & Ryan Pepiot had worked together in LA
• Who will Adrian Houser synch up with the Rays catchers
• Johnny DeLuca had to leave the game after speeding across the bases for a triple
• Cameron Misner may be coming back
• Need to put a Gatorade station at third. Several triples causing hamstring injuries
• Junior Caminero’s bare hand throw from third base to Yandy Diaz
• Fairbanks closed the door
• Respect for Trout & d’Arnaud on the field for the Angels
• Rays off to see Mariners – Ex-Rays, Randy Arozarena & Luke Raley & Miles Mastrobuoni
• Taylor Walls comparison with Carlos Gomez w
• Nick Fortes exciting first home run as a Tampa Bay Ray
• Chandler Simpson – a third pitch to first from the mound, a pickle and a balk get Chandler to second base -
• Christopher Morel’s home run & Junior Caminero’s response
• Rays building camaraderie together on the road
• Roman Anthony extension – 8 years 130 to 230 million with the Red Sox
• Could Rays new owners do the same with Junior Caminero to make him a core piece for the next decade.
• Will Rays be more attractive to Kyle Tucker if a deal with Caminero is in place
• Guardians pitcher, Gavin Williams, 8 & 2/3 inning no hitter - 126 pitches
• Raceway MLB game mirroring Savannah Bananas – why didn’t they have a race on the track during the game
• Savannah Bananas bringing- Val Perez, Kelsie Whitmore & Jocelyn Alo onboard
• Caitlyn Clark model in WNBA – Could Kelsie Whitmore be that person for Women’s Baseball
• Comparisons with Bananas & Indianapolis Clowns bringing Toni Stone onto the team
• Kelsie with the Bananas may normalize the idea of women’s baseball
• World Baseball Classic – add a Women’s Classic to run in tandem
• All American Women's Tournament and four teams, including Tamara Holmes, managing the Peaches, Alex Oglesby managing the Racine Bells plus catcher Beth Greenwood & pitcher Meggie Meidlinger
• Women’s baseball is not currently part of the Olympics
• Veronica Alvarez, USAWNT Women’s Baseball Team Manager, discussion on the Olympics sports (link to show)
• Could Women’s Baseball be part of the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane
• Where does the Olympics draw the line of who should be able to participate bringing in professional team or leave it to collegiate / amateur level
• Would WNBA be able to go to the Olympics
• Future Ace Yoniel Curet making AAA debut with the Durham Bulls – check him out on MiLB.tv
• Van Bell outstanding performance – gave up only 1 hit in 6 innings
• Hopeful times with Angels series with some cringe time
• The Road West Coast games = late bedtime starts
• Looking forward to a Tampa Bay Rays winning streak

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

• Griffin Jax comes on Taj Bradley traded
• Twins are Kryptonite to Rays during Trade Deadlines
• Fans should be ecstatic - keeping Brandon Lowe, Pete Fairbanks & Yandy Diaz
• Rays gave up 3 pieces for a catcher
• Expected Tristan Gray was going to be called up
• Dealing Jose Cabaellero to the Yankees not happy to see his speed moving to New York
• Love for the Yankees not magnified
• games with Yankees lost 3 in 4 game series
• 4 players pulled from the game 3 from injuries & one sent to Yankees dugout
• Who's On First - Aranda, Brandon Lowe, Matt Thaiss - what will it look like when Ha-Seong Kim returns
• Does Matt Thaiss stay with the team
• Ben Rortvedt value for trade
• Brent Rucker was given a shot wiith the A's
• No big guns coming up from the minors
• Hunter Feduccia will bring more strength and power to the team
• Kyle Snyder & Chad Mottola
• Duncan David has amped up his velocity and location
• What does the future hold with Adrian Hauser
• Rasmussen & Hauser sub 3.0 ERA could be the post-season game pitchers
• Andrew Kittredge moves
• Carlos Correa - $200 million dollar man returns to Houston Astros
• Jesus Sanchez , another X-Ray moves to Astros
• SerAnthony Dominguez Orioles to Blue Jays
• And you though Danny Jansen felt bad
• Jose Caballero moved mid game to Yankees dugout
• x-Rays - Charlie Morton leaves Orioles for his old Astros coach AJ Hinch. Charlie brings veteran leadership and confidence to the dugout that will instill energy for the team
• What's happening with the Red Sox at the Trade deadline this year
• What will Alex Cora do with the Red Sox
• Blue Jays were a flat performance in trades exception is Domínguez
• SerAnthony Dominguez will strengthen the Red Sox team
• Andrew Kittredge moves from O's to Cubs
• Caballero will improve the Yankees
• Ha-Seong Kim will be returning soon
• Yoniel Curet & Duncan David could be moving up
• Twins are the kryptonite for Rays during trade deadlines
• Jax has the chance to be a closer as an elite pitcher
• Fans should be ecstatic as Rays are keeping Brandon Lowe, Yandy Diaz & Pete Fairbanks for close to a decade with each player

If you enjoyed this show, go ahead like and subscribe to BaseballBiz On Deck. Also you can find Mat at M-A-T-G-E-R-M-A-I-N dot B Sky social. That's Mat at M-A-T-G-E-R-M-A-I-N dot B, Sky social or Mark at Baseball Biz on Deck dot B Sky Social. You may also find BaseballBiz on Deck, at iHeart Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, and at www.baseballbizOnDeck.com