• Emotional challenges of being a baseball fan during a tough season & highlights the importance of staying even-keeled, like successful baseball players
• Recent experience watching the Rays play the Braves in Atlanta, mentioning the hot weather & a humorous incident with a child kicking his seat
• Rays' pitching struggles, particularly with reliever Phil Maton
• Mat notes the Rays' unsuccessful history of investing in relievers & advocates for building the bullpen from within the system
• Mark & Mat discuss promising players like Cleavinger & Jason Adam, noting their contributions
• Pete Fairbanks' recent injury scare & relief that it's only a bruised finger.
• Importance of moving on from underperforming players & discusses the ups & downs of the Rays' bullpen.
• Braves shortstop, Orlando Arcia was underestimated early in his career
• Rickwood Event - Gray Sox/Montgomery Biscuits & Birmingham Black Barons,
• Chandler Simpson comparison to legendary base-stealer Ricky Henderson.
• Simpson's impressive stats & his potential impact on the Rays
• Need players like Simpson who place the ball well & steal bases contrasted with power hitters
• Basics of baseball: getting on base rather than hitting home runs, & avoid obsession with exit velocity.
• Tony Gwynn & Kirby Puckett, frustrated the pitchers
• Gambling & Baseball stadium health y foods
• Bi-lingual food vendors at Expos games – "cotton candy - barbe à papa"
• Rick Vaughn's book on Tampa’s baseball history.
• Babe Ruth's legendary home run at Plant Field
• U.S support for Finland during Russia's invasion & the All-Star game in Tampa.
• Willie Mays's passing & his contributions to the game & the Negro Leagues.
• Pitching Home run leaders for the Twins & Rays: Pablo Lopez & Aaron Civale.
• 2018 draft picks by the Rays: Taj Bradley, Joe Ryan, Shane McClanahan, & Matthew Liberatore.
• Shock of Joe Ryan's trade, happy to see his success with the Twins.
• Harold Ramirez being picked up by the Nationals after being DFA'd.
• Rays pitchers, Jeffrey Springs & Shane Boz potential return.
• Potential trades & team strategies, particularly regarding Dodgers & the Cubs.
• Changing routines for pitchers transitioning between starting & relieving roles
• Successful transition: Luis Urias with the Dodgers.
• Young players' aspirations focused on starting pitching rather than relieving roles..
• Yandy Diaz – wearing out pitchers
• Testing the Rays’ lineup - Siri is again making it happen at the plate
• Rays atrocious bullpen
• Yandy’s consecutive times on base
• When will Winning Streak begin?
• Depth in starting pitching
• 5 of the top 100 prospects are in Rays system
• From “quadruple A” player to MLB
• Mark & Mat discuss Papa Johns & Tim Horton’s trades
• You can’t buy coffee beans from Tim Horton’s – addictive?
• Taj Bradley & Joe Ryan face-off
• 22 days before the St. Pete vote on the Tampa Bay Rays stadium

Mat on Twitter x.com @Mat_Germain_
Mark can be found on Twitter x.com @TheBaseballBiz & and at http://www.baseballbizondeck.com
BaseballBiz can be found on iheartradio, Stitcher, Apple, and Spotify
Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward"

@Mat_Germain & Mark review the Rays after

• Discussion about dome stadiums and the necessity of having one with a dome that can be opened or closed.
• Concerns about player safety with bullpen mounds on the field.
• Specific example of Johnny DeLuca's near injury due to bullpen placement.
• Argument for designing stadiums to better protect players.
• Mention of Oakland's unique bullpen setup.
• Suggestion to use Tropicana 300 levels of the stadium for bullpen areas.
• Comment on the emotional impact of a team's poor performance at home.
• Reflection on the team's lack of energy and production.
• Discussion on the importance of timing with the trade deadline approaching.
• Positive signs with players like Brandon Lowe making significant contributions.
• Mention of specific matchups and players' performances.
• Discussion about Harold Ramirez's role and performance.
• Mention of a Twitter survey about Harold Ramirez's potential landing spots.
• Recognition of Ramirez's character and improved defensive abilities.
• Mention of Mat Germain's presence on Twitter and his valuable insights.
• Commentary on recent changes to Twitter's (X) like feature.
• Observation on the impact of these changes on user interactions.
• Update on Jeffrey Springs' performance in AAA and his potential return.
• Speculation on trade deadline decisions for the Rays.
• Reflection on the emotional rollercoaster of being a Rays fan.
• Comparison of the current season to the previous year's performance in the AL East.
• Rays Catchers options – JT Realmuto, Sean Murphy, William Contreras – where would the Rays be now if one of these guys had been brought to the Rays
• Atlanta Braves, Charlie Morton & Travis d’Arnaud battery is exceptional.
• Would future Charlie Morton become a relief pitcher like John Smoltz and later as a pitching coach
• Siri bringing back some fire to the Rays
• A view from the Rays farm –strength coming up soon
• Chandler Simpson, in park home run in 14.2 seconds
• Future new roster of Opening Day in the new Rays stadium
• Rays need a catcher like Orioles’ Adley Rutschman – He is a consistent leader
• Mike Zunino – a steady force for the Rays – could be a good scout for the Rays
• Florida Collegiate Baseball – Florida State & University of Florida heading to the NCAA post-season in Omaha
• Jac Caglione
• Ybor Legacy Awards with Lou Piniella – kicking up the dirt
• St Pete Stadium & Collen Wright update – all-day workshop and then first official vote on the Rays stadium
• Annual Summer Break with the St. Pete Council while Rays stadium is being considered
• Gotta bring Shane Baz & Jeffery Spring up sooner than later
• Chandler Simpson moves up & Braydon Taylor OPS through the roof

Thanks to Mat Germain for bringing his knowledge, wit and wisdom to the show. You can catch more of Mat on Twitter x.com @Mat_Germain_
Mark can be found on Twitter x.com @TheBaseballBiz & and at http://www.baseballbizondeck.com
Subscribe, follow and rate the show. Thank you.
BaseballBiz can be found on iheartradio, Stitcher, Apple, and Spotify
Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward"

Lindsay Imber of Close Call Sports visits BaseballBiz On Deck & analyzes MLB Ejections with a breakdown on the process & the rules that may have been broken. She shares a humorous & informative look at baseball league ejections on the Close Call Sports YouTube channel

• On YouTube channel, Close Call Sports, Lindsay analyzes recent baseball plays using the MLB rule book.
• Becoming a member of the Close Call Sports community
• Controversial play w/ Tommy Pham
• Pham's path to home plate was in fair territory
• Home plate collision rule & runner restrictions.
• Rule Changes & Interpretations:
• Mound visit rules, including catcher-initiated visits and unintended pitching changes.
• Pitching Changes & Ejections:
  • Example, involving the Tampa Bay Rays' pitching coach Kyle Snyder and mound visits count.
  • Explanation of rule requiring an ejection for an unintended pitching change without a replacement ready
• Rule Confusion & Clarification: between MLB's press releases & MLB rule book
  • Importance of understanding the rule book to avoid misunderstandings
• Hidden Ball Trick: Examples at college, high school, MLB
• Process for creating videos, focusing on ejections & rule situations
• Balance between ejection & educational rule videos for fan education
• "Ejections of the Year Awards" Best Umpire, Ejections of the Year, Promising Umpires, Honorable Umpire, Fill-in Umpire and more.
• Avoidable ejections due to poor game management
  • Avoiding unnecessary confrontations & ejections.
  • Post-game ejection of the Padres manager, Mike Shildt
  • The importance of umpires walking away to avoid conflict.
  • How are ejections evaluated
• Challenges of Automatic Ball-Strike systems (ABS)
  • The future of baseball with robo-umps & potential impact on ejections and game management.
  • Stress w/ umpires who must still be prepared to make calls if the system fails.
  • Differences between fully automated systems & challenge system
  • Issues with ABS, such as post-game data changes affecting call accuracy.
  • Transition to robo-umps in MLB will be complex & interesting to watch.

Support Close Call Sports w/ Patreon
Mark is on x.com @TheBaseballBiz & at http://www.baseballbizondeck.com
Just remember to subscribe, follow and rate the show. Thank you.
BaseballBiz can be found on iheartradio, Stitcher, Apple, and Spotify