RaysUp Mariners Etsy Witch, Rays Medicine Man & Hot Rods

314 BaseballBiz RaysUp - Thursday, September 11, 2025

[00:00:00] Mark Corbett: Welcome to BaseballBiz On Deck. I'm Mark Corbett, and of course, here he is, Mr. Mat Germain. How you doing, buddy? 

[00:00:10] Mat Germain: I'm I, I'm not living the dream, but I'm living a dream, I guess is a dream. 

[00:00:15] Mark Corbett: Oh, yeah. I, I don't know. Am I, am I, we talked about this last week. I mean, things were looking good. I mean, they're still okay, but you.

[00:00:25] I'm going back to where I was saying a couple of weeks ago, you start out thinking World Series, you know, you then you're saying, I'm definitely gonna win the division. Then you say, you know, okay, we're, we're, we're going to, we're gonna get a wild card. Okay, it looks like maybe we'll have a 500, 500 average series this year.

[00:00:43] I don't know, I don't think we're gonna see another Longoria with the 162 game to crack into, uh, the wild card. I mean, any, any thoughts there? 

[00:00:55] Mat Germain: Um, I think, you know, it feels like the rays [00:01:00] have been running. Um, like if, if you've ever ran a half marathon or a long Rays, a longer Rays than you probably should have, and you get that stitch in your side like somewhere around halfway to two thirds in, it feels like the rays have got that stitch in their side and they just can't shake it.

[00:01:18] And they keep trying to stretch it out as they're running. They keep trying to hydrate and, and try all kinds of tricks, but nothing's happening. And, and they keep hitting bumps in the road. Um. I, I honestly don't know what kind of year they thought they were going to have, to be honest, like through it all.

[00:01:37] I think the, the, probably the biggest disappointment they have, I think would be the Shane McClannahan not actually coming through at any point in time in the season. 'cause they probably had anticipated that at some point he would arrive and, and that there they would take a leap forward as an example.

[00:01:54] But, uh, the last week has just been watching them in the Against the Guardians. They started off with a [00:02:00] bang and then just. Fizzled off. Yeah. And at that point I was like, ah, this just doesn't look like the offense is clicking enough to get to that point. And it kinda led to a post that I put today, which is just if there's anything, the rays can do this off season.

[00:02:16] And I want them to just take a really thorough look at how they develop hitters all the way through the Minors because there's a, a vulnerability with the hitters that they develop, which just doesn't seem to allow them to become above average in the majors. I think you can count on, Brandon Lowe.

[00:02:36] You could say he's an above average hitter, but the other ones that are on the team doing well, like Yandy Diaz wasn't developed by the Rays. He, he came to the Rays as a finished product. Right. , So the rest of them are just underwhelming. Overall. Junior Caminero might be the only one that you could point to, and I would say it's almost a God-given talent at this point based on how he's performing.

[00:02:59] Oddly enough, [00:03:00] both him and Yandy Diaz came to them from the Cleveland Guardian. So, you know, you gotta tip your hat to them and thank them for, for sending both of them over to the Rays. But, um, I, I do still point to the fact that junior ca wouldn't be where he is today if he hadn't done the A BL bit or the Winter League bit.

[00:03:20] So I, I know I'm gonna keep harping on that and hoping that some of the guys that struggled this year are gonna get a chance to play some winter ball and catch up. 

[00:03:30] Mark Corbett: I'm looking forward to seeing what's gonna happen 'cause. As far as regarding the hitting that you're talking about, because I don't know, does that need to be addressed at a minor league level?

[00:03:40] Does that need to be addressed here at, at the very top, you used the word completely and I thought, what all are you saying with that? Because I, I, you know, I don't wanna take anything away from Chad, Matolla, but we're expecting a lot from him to be, you know, as far as delivering the goods. 

[00:03:55] Mat Germain: Chad Mottola is not setting the stage for how those [00:04:00] players are developed in A Ball, in A-plus , Double A & AAA, right?

[00:04:05] That's something that's internal, and I'm sure the Rays will sit down and have a thorough look at everything. But I think sometimes an organization needs to recognize their weakest points. So when I, like I know the rays extremely well in how they've developed people over the last 10 years, and their two weakest spots are developing hitters that can hit in the majors and developing catchers.

[00:04:25] Those are their two weakest spots. Yeah. So if I'm the Rays this off season, I address those, I take a thorough look at what we've done and I say, what is wrong with this? What are teams that, that are doing much, much, much better, like the elites, right? So you could point to the brewers and how they develop catchers.

[00:04:45] Uh, you could point to other teams and how they develop hitters, whatever it is. Threes are, are knowledgeable enough to figure that out. They have the data right and they know how to look at it. So just look at it and say, what changes do we need to take [00:05:00] us? From here to there, and whether that's personnel changes that they need to do through the minors in terms of who's coaching who and, and in terms of what they're preaching in terms of the approach at the plate, everything.

[00:05:12] Just break it all down, tear it down, rebuild it the same way they would do with a pitcher coming in from another team, right? Like take that same approach that they seem to do so well at and and apply it to hitting and catching. 

[00:05:28] Mark Corbett: Well, I like that. I mean, it, it really s uh, stings though, when I think about our history with catchers about how many of our better catchers were, none of them are homegrown, well, I shouldn't say number, but I think of Wilson Ramos.

[00:05:41] He wasn't homegrown. I think of, um. Geez, little d you know, uh, d'Arnaud, you know, great, great catcher. And so those guys, and there's many others besides them, they were definitely not homegrown. And, uh, right now, either one of the F guys, uh, Feduccia or Fortes, or they forti, or either one [00:06:00] of them, neither one of them actually came through the gray system either did.

[00:06:03] Mat Germain: No, but I would say they're, they, they're showing potential, like they're showing potential to stick around at least one or two years. If, if the rays believe in them enough, like they're Feduccia is. Framing isn't gonna be elite at any point, but, but I think his all around game, it kind of, you know, is intriguing in some ways.

[00:06:24] Fortes is the guy that I think, you know, may have been overlooked before he got to the Rays. And if his bat ever comes around, his framing and his approach behind the plate and how he calls games, it's so, you know, above average that it would actually make him a pretty intriguing. Guy to keep around. So I, I think between the two, let's say the rays were to give Dom Keegan a, a shot at the show next year, and he was, he's their top catching prospect at the upper levels.

[00:06:51] Um, let's say that they want to give him a shot, then I, I could see Fortes being the guy that sticks around. But also if the rays do end up [00:07:00] letting Yandy Diaz go, Feduccia can play first base as well. Yeah. And he's got a decent enough bat to kind of. You know, chip in with whoever ends up being at first the most.

[00:07:09] Like, so right now, I know we, we we're a little bit down on the Rays and where they, when where they're going, right? But think about what this last month would've been with Jonathan Aranda aboard, you know, how big a loss was he in that momentum , and where would they have taken this? You know, you, you replaced Bob Seymour with Jonathan Aranda and you're taking a pretty significant leap forward.

[00:07:32] So I. Like I give the, the Rays a lot of slack in terms of, of the situation that they were handed. I give 'em a lot of p Rays for, for betting on,, Carson Williams who hit a ni huge home run the other day and, and he's kind of finding his groove a little bit, uh, as a major league player. Like they've done a lot of things right.

[00:07:53] And like we've said at the trade deadline, the guys they brought in weren't just brought in for one year. The majority of them were for a couple of [00:08:00] years and, and. Up to three for the most part. So all their investments are, are, are basically going to help them set the stage and money, like I know like a lot of people overlook that aspect of things, but getting rid of Ha-Seong Kim's contract.

[00:08:19] Oh yeah. And, and, and they basically have no commitments after next year, like zero. So they have a clean slate and new ownership coming in to do whatever they want. And, that's a huge, , opportunity. So that's why today I posted the,, the group of players that they have, and I think there's 12 of them on the 40 man roster that, that are under 27 years old.

[00:08:42] And so, you know, when you've got 12 guys that are MLB tested, uh, they, they have some seasoning and some of them are going to be stars. Some of them are not gonna be around very long, but you can tell there's a talent core there that's young enough and cheap enough to support. If the Rays were to [00:09:00] put in a huge investment and draw somebody in some way, somehow, whether it's in trade or a Free Agent, then , that's something that can become really interesting to watch.

[00:09:09] Did you see about the Kyle Tucker injury? 

[00:09:11] Mark Corbett: No. What happened there? 

[00:09:13] Mat Germain: So he was put on IL and, and the fear is that it's gonna really hurt his, uh, his free agency for a lot of re reasons. First of all, he hadn't really had the, , mammoth season that everybody expected he would have as a Cub, even though he is having a, a, a solid season, it's not by any means a down season.

[00:09:32] It's just not as great as it had been in 2024. Um. And, and, uh, from what I gather anyways, that, you know, when you talk about shoulders and, and those kinds of injuries, they tend to get a lot of people squeamish. So, um, you know, there, there's suspicion that it could be a shoulder injury that's bothering 'em most.

[00:09:54] Uh, there's the strained calf, I think is what he ended up going to on the IL for. [00:10:00] Um, but. It could go either way. You know how some teams don't like to talk about injuries and openly, et cetera? So hipaa, 

[00:10:08] Mark Corbett: right? Hipaa, I mean, it is kind of a strange thing about sports where if you stand in a line at the pharmacy, you're still be six feet back and not hear the medication that's been given.

[00:10:20] But however, if you're in sports, your medical history is out there for the world. But no, I, I'm sorry. You hear that about Kyle Tucker, I what, whatever that, the injury or, uh, difficulty he might be experiencing. 'cause I was looking forward to seeing him. Right now we are in the midst of what, six games in Chicago, you know?

[00:10:41] Mm-hmm. But a city that I don't think's been occupied yet. But, uh, we're up there and I hope everybody's got their papers. But, uh, it, it's, uh, it's. Windy City, is that right? Yeah. Second City. They all blend together for me after a while, but the funny thing is that we're, we're on the south side with the White Sox and [00:11:00] the White Sox are getting to see some old friends.

[00:11:02] We're bringing 'em back. We got, uh, Adrian Houser and Tristan Gray and both of those guys, they made a difference in our first game back last night in Chicago. 

[00:11:11] Mat Germain: They did. Yeah. Tristan Gray's been, , looking a lot more comfortable than he did the first time he came up with a Rays and, and, you know, playing time is the mother of all development, right.

[00:11:22] And so, uh, hopefully, it's a sign of things to come and hopefully he can keep chipping in and, and making good on, on his talents. He's always had the power, and I think you, where you're seeing a little bit with Tristan is he's comfortable on the field, he's comfortable defensively, and he's.

[00:11:39] Steady so. You know how we talked about Miles, uh, Mastrobouni with, , with the Mariners when, when we went up to Northwest, he was an X-Rays player that was a utility type that could move around, play him, you know, all over the infield, plays him out field as well. Tristan Gray is that kind of player as well, but he's got the power that makes him even more [00:12:00] intriguing than Miles Ma Mastrobouni, because.

[00:12:03] You know, when you're talking about guys off the bench that can have that key hit and, and can drive things forward late in the game. That's, that's what Tristan Gray can provide off the bench. Uh, so I'm hoping, you know, in some way, shape or form, whether it's with the Rays or with somebody else eventually, uh, that he's finding himself a role in MLB.

[00:12:23] Uh, 'cause like Mike Brosseau will tell you, it's not easy to keep those roles going. 

[00:12:28] Mark Corbett: Ouch!. I was just, yeah. Yeah. It's, it is difficult. Um. I put an ouch in there 'cause I looked over at the screen. Here we are. It is Wednesday night and I know that we were at least leading off here, but now see that they've got three runs up on us.

[00:12:42] Three to one at the moment. Yeah. But going back to last night, you know, Tuesday the first game. I found it kind of interesting when I'm looking at, uh, a co a couple things. One you see in Jake Mangum. All in all he is looking good, you know, he's, he continues to look good. He had difficulty with that one last night that went over [00:13:00] the ball over the wall when he was out in the outfield trying to catch that, and then that wasn't anything there.

[00:13:05] The other thing that you saw in the outfield was Josh Lowe and he was running out there, catches the ball, wasn't even snow ConEd, but then he runs up against the wall, which is like a chain leak. Fence and with the, the impact of that knocking the ball out of his glove. But if you had any concern about Josh delivering for the team, he made up for that by, uh, driving in a run with a home run himself.

[00:13:28] So two rbis and a home run for Josh Lowe. It was a home run night. So there was him, who was it? There was Tristan Gray, there was Richie Palacios. So we had three home runs in that win last night. So I'm looking now for tonight that we should have at least another three home runs. That's the, that's the anticipation right now, Matt.

[00:13:47] So I, I'm hoping, see what we got up here right now. That's, they have, I don't, I didn't, I wasn't watching enough to see what actually happened, but I know they got that one guy, Montgomery. It was just amazing, you know, for a [00:14:00] team that's suffering as much as the White Sox are. Let's see, where are they? This, at this point, they're 55 and 90.

[00:14:07] Uh, they, they held the bottom of the bucket last year, but the Rockies are, are, helped 'em out . Uh, so, 

[00:14:16] Mat Germain: so how easy is it to, uh, to double up, uh, Chandler Simpson when he's at the plate? So that's what happened in the first inning, like the, or in the second? It was in the second inning. Yeah.

[00:14:29] They had the, the Rays had the bases loaded and they got Chandler Simpson to. And, you know, induce it into a double play, right. Cars. And, and Montgomery was one of the guys that threw him out. And uh, you know, it takes quite a bit of, of good turnout to actually get Chandler before he steps on that first base bag when you're, when he's putting the ball in play.

[00:14:51] So, uh, yeah, he's been a, he is been a blessing for, for the White Sox who need a, , a new leader, a new face of the [00:15:00] franchise. And uh, I would say Kyle Teel is the other guy with the White Sox that really. Shows, well, gives them some promise and something to lean on, but their pitching's really been what's I, I think most of their fans would point to as being surprisingly good since they've, , turned the corner in terms of being the worst team in baseball to now being almost the, the worst team in baseball.

[00:15:22] Right. Um. But, but yeah, so I think, Rays fans can allude to the fact that sometimes you just need to, to focus on the positives and, and ignore the, the noise behind the scenes, especially as you're finishing a season, the white socks are just, uh. Do you know what their stadium status is? Like?

[00:15:40] What's going on with ownership? Have they selected a new site? Have they, you know, you're talking about stadiums and, and they're also in a plight right now where I, I don't remember when their contract ends or when they need to, to find a new home, but they're one of those intriguing teams in terms of, you know, if, if certain [00:16:00] cities show really well for expansion Yeah.

[00:16:03] And they don't land a team, you know, the White Sox might come knocking. 

[00:16:08] Mark Corbett: Wow, that you're really thinking outta the box there, man. 'cause I, I, I didn't see that as a possibility, but, you know, the, with the challenges they've had and their, their owner has not been exactly friendly about what he wants to see the future of that team.

[00:16:23] He'd been on this, that's the guy that also pissed off Michael Jordan with the Bulls. Mm-hmm. So, uh, since he owns them as well, so who knows, you know, that's, it's been a strange team for the last five or six years anyway. 

[00:16:38] Mat Germain: but honestly, if, if, if you're an owner, right? Of a one 30th stake, right?

[00:16:43] So you own one of 30 teams, why would you wanna share a city with somebody else? 

[00:16:49] Mark Corbett: Montreal, Montreal. 

[00:16:52] Mat Germain: You know, I, I don't know why you would wanna do that. So if I'm him for sure, like let's say Montreal and Utah [00:17:00] get, uh, get a team like Salt Lake City in Montreal, then I'm interested in Nashville. Uh, or I'm interested in Portland, or I'm interested in, you know, 'cause then I have a city of my own to kinda,

[00:17:12] i, I don't know how he improves his play in Chicago to become anything above or near the Cubs ever. So you're always, always, always, always going to play second fiddle to the Cubs. Regardless of whether you win three championships in the next five years. The Cubs will always outshine you. It doesn't matter.

[00:17:34] It, you know it, it's. I don't know. I know there's some people love that about the White Sox. They love, they, they, they kind of feed on it. And for the fans of the White Sox, that's what they love is the fact that they are the dark side. They are the, the underdogs, the less, the forgotten ones in Chicago, whatever you want to call it.

[00:17:54] Right. And, and, and they kind of feed off that whatever. But to me that just sounds a lot like the Oakland [00:18:00] A's and, and it's not really. A team you wanna model yourself after if you're kind of trying to support a franchise. And when your owner's having this hard a time, um, getting the right deal for a stadium, it points to a weakness in terms of political influence as well.

[00:18:17] And we've seen what that did to Stu Sternberg. So, 

[00:18:20] Mark Corbett: Not going too much into Stu, but. I've been trying to keep up some with the new ownership, and from what I'm seeing, Stu's not gonna be completely outta the picture. It looks like he's gonna have a, he's gonna have a piece of the action and the, all the talk for the Orlando Dreamers.

[00:18:37] I believe that guy. Is gonna be involved and have a piece of the action. So that whole idea of the Orlando Dreamers, I think is going to go away and it's gonna be incorporation. So you see, you've got your Jacksonville developer, you've got a, and I don't know if he's also involved with the Jackson, um, the Jumbo shrimp, Jacksonville, jumbo shrimp, but there's some [00:19:00] Bassett with them, uh, Zalupski with the real estate.

[00:19:03] And I do, do not remember the name of the gentleman in Orlando. And then of course, Stu. So that's. Four. And then there's gonna be minority share owners with the Rays as well. So I'm, I'm getting a gist as far as what the ownership of that team may be looking like is that Stu will probably be in there for a while with this group and whether or not he stays for a long period of time or not, uh, I, I don't know, but I imagine most likely he'll be there for another three years or so in some capacity, but he will not be the face of the Rays.

[00:19:38] Mat Germain: I think, I think the only way that I think, uh, the only reason I can think of that he stays as part of it is the Trop lease. Hmm. I think they need him to be the one who continues to guide them through that lease process. And, and get rid of it entirely. [00:20:00] And also the Wander Franco issue. There's some lingering, lingering administrative issues is the best way to put it.

[00:20:08] That, that the team has to, , go through. And I think that's where his expertise is also going to be valued. And, and, you know, of the Rays. Need to lean on somebody who has insight on those topics, then he is the person to kind of back them up and, and to really, you know, make sure that all the t uh, the T's are crossed and the i's are dotted.

[00:20:31] And I don't know that they would be able to keep that around. If he just handed the team over to a new ownership group, then it'd always be going back to him. And at that point. What is it like an advisory capacity? Like how do you, you know, he is not gonna answer the phone every time they call, but if he's a minority owner, well, yeah.

[00:20:51] Mark Corbett: Yeah, I, you bring up Franco, and I don't know if y'all saw or not, but, uh, he has been admitted to a clinic and, uh, some question [00:21:00] as to, some debilitation he may be experiencing mentally right now, but I, I hope that they're able to help him out with that. I, I'm not sure how this would play out and, uh, with the contract that he has with the Rayss, if you wind up.

[00:21:14] Finding somebody who's, uh, who's not necessarily mentally capable to do the job anymore. You know, I mean, we're all about making sure people have good mental health and, and I wanna make sure he does. I'm just trying to think of a. Part of me is just the rotten part that's always saying what kinda deal could be worked outta here?

[00:21:35] You know, is this gonna be some way where somebody's trying to manipulate it and, and get something done to make sure that he has some money? I don't know, that's just, uh, negative Nelly in me on that one. 

[00:21:47] Mat Germain: But how would he get to the U.S.A.? Like there's no way for him to get a work visa ever. No. So, so that's the, the stopping factor, like, especially where he's a Latin American player coming into the [00:22:00] US in this day and age.

[00:22:02] Yeah. I don't, I don't wanna, you know, put things too much into the spotlight, but there's, uh, a huge wave of, uh. Uh, 

[00:22:12] Mark Corbett: well, we're deporting yeah, illegal immigrants and those especially, , with, uh, those who have a criminal record and well, you know, whether it illegal or not, the, uh, criminal record part would, would keep the gentleman right out of here.

[00:22:26] So, so I don't think it's really a deal. I would just like to see that resolved for, for everybody's, uh. Benefit. 

[00:22:33] Mat Germain: Yeah. I think the best way for it to be resolved, quite honestly, is for him to sign a contract with a Caribbean team and just stay where he is and yeah, play baseball, you know, uh, if he wants or if they're willing to have him, uh, on those teams as well, because there's no guarantee.

[00:22:50] That's the fact. , And just, , find a way or, uh, you know, he, he can. Finds another way to make a living. [00:23:00] There you go. Best way to put it. 

[00:23:03] Mark Corbett: Well, it's interesting too, going back to your comments about hitting. Mm-hmm. 'cause I keep thinking, man, what, what, what could be done? You, I and my mind goes back to that main baseball reference I continue to look at, and it is the movie Major League.

[00:23:18] Mm-hmm. And uh, and. And I'm, I'm thinking of the one player who's got his little, uh, character that he, he gives rum to and he gives a cigar to, and, you know, to bring in, to take away the fear of the bat, the bat of the ball. So could hit the curve ball, but, so, you know, it's, it's gonna take that kinda magic.

[00:23:37] I, and here's something I just saw. Mariners. Mariners been, they haven't had a good streak lately. They were doing so poorly on the re road. I don't, I think I read that they had not won a road series since the All-Star break. Yeah, I, if that's even half true. It's amazing. But one fan who [00:24:00] just. Fed up with it, said, I've got to find a way to help my team.

[00:24:06] So where did he turn to Etsy. Yeah. Everybody goes to Etsy when they're looking for something special. What did he, he, he found a witch who could put a, a, a, a spell upon the team to make things go better. Let's see here. Oh, how's this going? I'm gonna read some of the story. 

[00:24:24] Mat Germain: I love it. 

[00:24:25] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Yeah. This is from.

[00:24:26] Uh, sports.my northwest.com. This is on Friday afternoon. Just before the Mariners lost their fourth straight, and for the sixth time in seven games, a user under the handle of, looks like not Bob Ross posted that they had an Etsy witch to cast a spell to end the Mariners' woes on Saturday morning, they posted an update with a screenshot of correspondence with Spell by Luna on Etsy confirming the purchase of a 1999 $19 99 cents spell with a $4 shop [00:25:00] discount to help the Mariners get their act together and start.

[00:25:04] Winning baseball games again and hopefully make their way to the World Series. Well spell by Leader's response reads, see reason part I completed my spell with my best materials for you. It was a ritual process full of beautiful energies. Dear, everything is fine now. All you need to do is stay positive and accept the manifest manifestation of the spell.

[00:25:33] Well, I, I think they won that night. I'm not sure, but you know, well the funny thing was, I keep thinking back to Joe Maddon 'cause he actually brought in a medicine madness. The guy was actually a tribal leader for the Seminoles here and, uh, see what was his name? Geez. Oh, Henry something. Bobby Henry. Bobby Henry.

[00:25:52] And Joe Maddon, I love him, man would, he was looking to find energy and electricity wherever he could find it. So he [00:26:00] brought in this medicine man. And you know, the thing of it was if they were looking for a rain delay, it wasn't gonna happen. 'cause they was still in the trop at that point. But thinking outside of the box, Matt, I mean this is some creative thinking.

[00:26:13] I, 1999, that's what it takes to break a losing streak. 'cause $19 and 99 cents. 

[00:26:21] Mat Germain: You know, there, there's a thing with, with sports, it's a little bit kooky sometimes. Right? Okay. And, and I think even as a fan sometimes, if your team is doing really well, whatever it is that you're doing, the the spot you're sitting on the couch, uh, how you're situated in the room, what shirt you were wearing, what hat you were wearing, all these things become important, right?

[00:26:44] Especially when you're going through a playoff series or a, a winning streak. All of a sudden everything needs to be the same. Wasn't it Terry Francona has to have spaghetti before every game or, or something like that. Like there are certain things that athletes [00:27:00] will do because they firmly believe that they're, you know, they're going to impact the game in some way.

[00:27:06] So I appLowed that fan for going on Etsy and doing what he needed to do to put his mind at ease. And help his team out. Right. I encourage all Rays fans to do the thing and, and find some way, shape, or form to, you know, throw out some good karma towards your team because I think that's really what it ultimately comes down to, right?

[00:27:29] Is, is all the good karma you, you're throwing out there and you're hoping. Collectively that it has an impact on, on the outcomes. Obviously it won't, but it, it's a nice thing to kind of put your mind at ease and say, you know what? At least I did my part. I can hang my hat on that and, uh, next time if it didn't work, I'll try something different.

[00:27:51] And when it does work, that'll be my ritual that I do every single time I need it. 

[00:27:56] Mark Corbett: Well, we've gotta find that buddy. We really do. Because I mean, let's face it. [00:28:00] Looking here at, uh, how things have progressed with the Wild Card, where are we now? Let's see. We are, how many games back? It, many games back. Uh, let's see, because the Al Wild card right now, you got the Yankees, the Red Sox, the Mariners, the Rangers, the guardians, the Kansas City Royals, and then us.

[00:28:19] And that's just not. Going to make it happen this year. It is interesting when you look at the American League that we're seeing not only do the Blue Jays lead the Al East, but in the wild cards you have two uh, potential ones there with the Yankees and the Red Sox. So we've got. Got an interesting group of games coming up, man, Matt.

[00:28:41] I mean, let's see. We're seeing, so we're gonna stay in Chicago for the six day little joy ride and head on over to see the Cubs, which is gonna be even more challenging, hopefully. I mean, well, the team's gonna be a little stronger than we think than the White Sox, the cubbies. [00:29:00] And then we, we, uh, have what come back home and play four games against the Jays.

[00:29:06] Uh, three with Boston. 

[00:29:09] Mat Germain: Yeah, there's seven against the Jays overall, uh, between now and the end of the season. So those are tough. Like that's just, that's a team that plays the rays pretty rough overall. And the same with the Red Sox. So that's why after the Guardian series, I was like, yeah, this is the, the season that I'm calling right now, because I just don't see a way out of it.

[00:29:31] I, I don't, first of all, I don't see the other teams losing that much to let them. Catch up right now. The caveat to that would be the Mariners. So the Mariners are four and a half games ahead. They could go in a mean losing streak and really open the door, but the rays would have to go above and beyond against teams that they actually, you know, regularly struggle against.

[00:29:53] So I'm not saying it's impossible. But it's very implausible. 

[00:29:59] Mark Corbett: And the [00:30:00] Mar Mariners or Mariner fan just spent $19 and 99 cents to make sure that doesn't happen. So we'll see. Oh my gosh. But I see. Then we're going to, after the Boston. After playing the Jays here in Boston at home, our last six games are gonna be on the road this year.

[00:30:18] You know, it's the Orioles and then the Blue Jays. And I'm thinking of all the teams we're gonna be playing, we're gonna play the number one team, really. You know, obviously in our division, like she said, was it six games total or is it Uh, no, no. Seven games total, I believe with them. Geez. Manice, the other part.

[00:30:35] Can you believe we are down to just. 14 games left in a 162 game season. Yeah. Sheesh. 

[00:30:44] Mat Germain: It goes, it, it always seems to speed up at this time of year. Like you, you go all the way through July thinking, man, this season's taking forever. Now the sudden September hits and you're like, man, where'd the season go?

[00:30:57] So it, it's kind of odd the way that that baseball [00:31:00] works. But, uh, I think if you ask those pitchers, they, they can tell you that they feel every single inning and every single pitch now, um. Very, very profoundly. So that's where I think, you know, eventually Mark, we'll have to sit down and really do the math.

[00:31:16] Who added how many innings and, and what does that mean for them next year? Yeah. Because Drew Rasmussen, Shane Baz lot of those guys didn't really have, um. Very high innings pitched, uh, the previous season. , So there's been a lot of uptick and we're hoping that , they hold up really well over the off season , and are able to come back , and improve on what they did this year.

[00:31:39] But, , that's never a guarantee and it's the same across the board. I think you're seeing right now a lot of teams that are wishing the trade. Window was still open so they could acquire some pitching because a lot of them are kind of, you know, walking on eggshells when it comes to who they're putting on the mound.

[00:31:57] , , and I kind of took a quick glance at that today, [00:32:00] especially just. You know, looking at next year and at the starting pitching depth that the rays do have and, and last, uh, uh, last season they made a lot of trades mid-season, you know, kind of moving on from that season and they brought in a lot of pitchers that are doing really well.

[00:32:18] So Hopkins is one that we're gonna see basically graduate from AA to aaa. Uh, Jackson Bow Mester was the guy who's been injured a little bit this year, but he has the potential to be in AAA next year as well. The rays are suddenly gonna have a glut of starting pitching. Um. Uh, available to them in AA and aa to the point where it's gonna push a lot of them to the pen like we saw this year with Ian Seymour for a while.

[00:32:45] That's how he got his taste into Major League Baseball. I think you're gonna see the same thing happen next year, but on, on larger scale. 'cause Ty Johnson, uh, Yel and a bunch of other guys are gonna be coming up and pushing the envelope at the AAA [00:33:00] level. So. Starting pitching wise, I'm very confident with what the Rays have going into next year.

[00:33:06] Uh, in terms of the depth overall, that's one of the things that I think is the strength. If I'm looking at the Rays from an outside point of view where I'm saying, you know what? We have the pitching to compete to start the year. We don't need to invest heavily on that in the off season. We're good to go.

[00:33:27] We can focus primarily on the hitting side and really key in on how we improve our performance to drive in enough runs to support them. 

[00:33:38] Mark Corbett: Let's, uh. Let's take that whole karmic thing you were talking about a moment ago and see where we can have a little joy. Mm-hmm. And once again, if we take a peek into the Minors, there is some good news out there.

[00:33:53] And maybe that's where, as Rays fans, we should be having our focus. I mean, we should enjoy every game. We should enjoy every, [00:34:00] and batten every pitch with the Rays, but smile a little bit more sometimes when you're looking at the Minors. Tell us a little bit about what's going on there, Mat. 

[00:34:09] Mat Germain: So yesterday the, the Hot Rods uh, you know, had their first playoff game.

[00:34:15] So, uh, I think the most Rays fans don't really pay attention much to the, uh, the minor leagues in general. But, you know, you would think, especially when you, you just went to the Little League World Series, right. And, and it's exciting because it's. The tournaments, the playoffs, everybody involved, you know, has a finality to it.

[00:34:34] Everybody leads up to a certain point where you declare a champion. So you would think as a professional baseball league, you know, the same kind of allure would come to the minor leagues and, and it's just not the way that it is right now with the way , the MLB is set up their their a sport. , The, the rays unfortunately had their, uh, their A ball affiliate, uh, lose their first game, but they have two more games [00:35:00] coming.

[00:35:00] So I wanna promote those. If the Rays fans want to see, you know, the a plus team in action, uh, they're playing on Thursday and Friday at 6 35 Central. Um, and you can watch them, uh, put their best foot forward against, uh, some of the. You know, hub city players, right, who are up one zero in the, in the series and it's the best outta three.

[00:35:21] So those are gonna be, either one game or it might be two games. So for the South Atlantic League, which is what they play, , at some point they'll have , a couple of games that'll settle out how the season works out. Unfortunately, for the Charleston River Dogs, the season has ended and so they promoted a lot of the players to help out.

[00:35:41] , The hot rods, uh, some of the players that were prominent on the Charleston RiverDogs are, are now in the, what they call the development list, right?

[00:35:50] Um, I'll just add that Narciss, Cisco Polanco, uh, Jonathan Russell and Jar, uh, Jadon Bercovich are, are three guys that were promoted up [00:36:00] to, uh, the high A and they did the same thing with Carson Williams way back in the day, whenever they had an opportunity to get 'em into playoff games.

[00:36:07] They did, and, and so they liked. Give them a taste of what that's like, uh, as much as possible. So the other team that's going to be in the playoffs eventually is the Montgomery Biscuits. Mm-hmm. Uh, so they were able to make it in, uh, based on their second half performance. So, uh, the manager we had on there, Kevin Boles will be able to get a taste of, uh.

[00:36:28] Of the playoffs for his players. And, uh, I know they're gonna be a dangerous team in, in, in the Southern League to, to try to go for that championship, uh, just because they have such strong pitching. And I think, um, you know, there's a good chance that those guys will be able to pull it off. I'm not sure when the game start.

[00:36:46] I think it's after the 15th of, of September. So they still have a, another series. But just an example, I've been watching them on, on the side of, uh. My screen as we've been talking. And, uh, Brody Hopkins has five innings pitched [00:37:00] tonight. He's only allowed one hit and one walk. He has six Ks. Wow. Nowhere. So he's finishing the season very strong, , looking like a guy that, you could argue, let's say Carson Williams graduates from their prospect system.

[00:37:14] He's going to be one of the top three guys that people rank for, for, to Rays prospects this off season. 

[00:37:21] Mark Corbett: Fun times ahead, my friend. So yeah, let's go ahead and enjoy watching them as well. Um, I'll put notes up on where they can see that in the, the show notes is also, I realize it's only got a couple of days 'cause we're, this will probably go live on Thursday, uh, afternoon, and then you'll have that Thursday and Friday to see those last games.

[00:37:41] That'll be good. Oh man. Well, it's been another exciting week for the Tampa Bay Rays and I like to think with the mentality of, of a good pitcher. That they don't think too long on their last pitch. They get excited about what that next one's gotta [00:38:00] be, what they want it to be. And I think as a fan, that's how we have to look at each of the upcoming games.

[00:38:05] So forget the World Series. Forget the 500. I'm not saying that anything's impossible. But I'm saying enjoy each game just as that pitcher has, and give attention to that, what that next pitch is going to be. And that's all I have to say about that.

[00:38:21] Mat Germain: Mm-hmm. 

[00:38:21] Mark Corbett: , Well, there you have it, boys and girls. Another fun week with the Rays, and if it doesn't get any better than this, I don't know what we'll do. I. But you know, there's the future to see, enjoy every game like we were talking about a moment before.

[00:38:32] And certainly, certainly enjoy those bowling green hot rods. And I can't wait to see what Kevin Boles and, and the Montgomery Biscuits do as well. I'm really hoping, pulling for them, man. So, Matt, you know, there's a lot of good things going on and there's, uh, a big future we're gonna talk and, and future episodes about.

[00:38:49] Is there really gonna be another stadium and when that might happen. But anyway, until that fated day comes. We wanna thank you all again for joining us [00:39:00] here on BaseballBiz On Deck. And Matt, any other final words? 

[00:39:03] Mat Germain: I'm gonna say just enjoy the rays while they're at Steinbrenner field and, and, and get those games in if you can, because it could be the last time you get to see them in that, in that field.

[00:39:14] So that's, that's a rarity in, its in itself. So get out there and support them while you can 

[00:39:19] Mark Corbett: go Rays, Rays up.