RaysUp - DeLuca and Lowe back & the bats warm up with Grit & Glow of Tampa Bay Rays

Mat & Mark check out the 5 game winning streak of the Rays and a look to the future of the Tampa Bay Rays roster and how that will impact the team

•  Grit & Glow uniform Rave Reviews
• Rays selling strategy with the new City Connect uniforms and Nike
• Black Rays jersey are they bringing the energy to the team
• Armstrong & Palacios – on how to create a positive vibe
• Sea Change – Prospero’s vision from the Tempest with Jonny DeLuca
• For the month of May DeLuca is 11th in weighted runs. Randy Arozarena is 16th
• Tracking the pitches well           
• When will Junior Caminero be on the roster
  • Super 2’s a factor in decisions on bringing players up
  • Always Room to improve, work on speed to come
• Durham Bulls lineup is strong  tonight - Brandon Lowe, Junior Caminero, Jonathan Aranda, Curtis Mead, Yu Chang, etc.
• Some MLB teams would have a difficult time playing the Durham Bulls.
• Rays are rolling with 5 wins in a row.
• Upcoming 4 game series in May include AL East teams, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays & Baltimore Orioles
• It is tough to be a Chicago White Sox or Marlins fan just ask Nick Murawski of Good Guys Talk Back https://bit.ly/4bzHFBU
• Marlins GM, Peter Bendix, is taking first steps to building a new team as Luis Arraez is traded.  Much better than Yelich trade. Marlins get 3 new players
• White Sox least analytical team in MLB
• eX-Rays - Tommy Pham w/ White Sox, Joey Wendle w/ Mets, Willy Adames & Jake Bauers w/ Brewers
• Craig Calcaterra shares the experience with Willy in his “Cup of Coffee” newsletter 
• Willy Adames calls the home run to some friendly Kansas City Royals fans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFp2mklA84
•  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgyTIeSduhQ
• Yandy Diaz & Willy Adames sharing friendship in Milwaukee
• Notes on game 3 with Chicago White Sox – Kyle Snyder mound pitch
• Aaron Civale is struggling early into the game – 4th inning 
• Chad Mottola working with the Tampa Bay Rays batters
• Manuel Rodriguez – funky move on his pitches – (could he be Diego Castillo)
• Major League superstitions and rituals, Jason Adam & Manny Navarro Bear Hug
• Carbing up with Spaghetti & Pancakes
• Kevin Kelly came in and got the Rays out of a bases loaded situation
• Support for the Tampa Bay Rays new stadium. It is a critical moment we request that fans be vocal to insure agreements are finalized between the Rays and councilman. We don’t want another Montreal who lost their team
• When will the shovel hit the ground and turn the earth – hope to see that within the next 5 weeks
• Get your Grit and Glow going!

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
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Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward"

Transcript

RaysUp 232 Tampa Bay Rays Grit and Glow – MLB – BaseballBiz On Deck
 X.com Mat_Germain_ & Mark @TheBaseballBiz

[00:00:00] Mark Corbett: Welcome to BaseballBiz On Deck. I am Mark Corbett and with me, of course, is that superb scout, that man who can analyze anything when it comes from baseball and delivers the goods. That's none other than Mr. Mat Germain. How you doing today, Mat ?
Mat Germain: I am glowing, Mark. Yeah. Glowing. Yes, yes, yes. My gosh, man.

[00:00:29] Mark Corbett: It has been an interesting week. Did you get your grit and glow gear? 

[00:00:35] Mat Germain: I did. I did. I got the Jersey. I left it blank on the back. I said, that'll be my reward for when I go down to, uh, to see some spring games next year. And, uh, and I'll get the number and the name put on, and who knows, it might be junior Caminero.

[00:00:48] Mat Germain: It might be somebody else. We'll, we'll see how it goes. But, uh. I think that the Jersey itself is awesome. It's with it blank, especially I can wear it out without, you know, too many questions being asked and people going, Oh, they see the front. They're like, ah, that's an interesting Jersey worn it out already, uh, two days so far and, uh, just to see people's reactions.

[00:01:10] Mat Germain: And, uh, even up here, they're, they're very curious about, you know, what team it is and that they see it. Up front and center. Cause most people that, you know, I live in Canada, so there's a lot of Jays fans. And, uh, but they do recognize the Jersey and they're all like, you guys, you know, you hit it out of the park is what they, I'm always, I'm always told.

[00:01:30] Mat Germain: So, uh, it's definitely getting rave reviews pretty much everywhere that I've seen so far. 

[00:01:36] Mark Corbett: That's good to hear, man. And you're enjoying it as a fan. So that's pretty good right there as well. And my gosh, it seems to be sort of the catalyst, I mean, a part of it anyway, this week for the Rays. I understood they were going to wear it for three days and that's changed.

[00:01:54] Mat Germain: It's a really interesting, you know, thing to watch happen. It's as if all of ownership, the team, the organization as a whole is saying, wait a minute. We're on to something special here and we're not letting it go. It's like the organization has become superstitious and and you know it I don't think we've ever seen that in baseball where they literally have Rules set in place and then they change them up on the fly just because things are going so well They're refusing to 

[00:02:27] Mark Corbett: change it I love it, man.

[00:02:29] Mark Corbett: I know because I heard initially what I thought there were rules that you can only wear them so many times a year and, and all these other things, but I don't know if Nike set it up or the MLB, but I am pleased as punch that the Rays are doing it their way right now. 

[00:02:45] Mat Germain: Yeah. I think what it comes down to is, is the raise calling MLB and saying, yeah, listen, this is how much we normally sell jerseys at in terms of pace.

[00:02:55] Mat Germain: And this is what we're selling these at. You can decide which ones you want us to wear, but we're trying to push these. I think the conversation gets pretty easy at that point. 

[00:03:07] Mark Corbett: Well, I'm going to have to buy one of those 45 hats. I haven't convinced myself to buy a Jersey yet since I, the only one I have is one of my daughter gave me years ago with Longoria's name on the back of it.

[00:03:17] Mark Corbett: So, you know 

[00:03:18] Mat Germain: what it comes down to Mark? Like I've been wanting to buy a black raised Jersey forever and I just can't find them, can't find them online. Can't find one that I liked that I thought, you know, would suit, uh, My style anyway. So I would barely wear the other ones if I had them. So I said, you know, I want a white one.

[00:03:36] Mat Germain: I would get dirty so quickly. It would be ridiculous. And I'm imagining stains and I'm just, so in this case, I, I just think it's more useful color Jersey and I'm going to get a lot of use out of it. I'm pretty sure. 

[00:03:51] Mark Corbett: Well, good, man. You're going to wear it. I mean, I know a lot of us say, well, you got that Jersey from Longoria and it's signed.

[00:03:56] Mark Corbett: And I appreciate that. So are you, somebody said, well, you're going to have that thing framed. I said, well, what would that cost? Oh, about 300. I said, you know, I'm going to wear it myself at home during the games. Yeah. If I had, yeah, but the black ones, man, they are look, they are so cool. I'd have to seriously, seriously consider that.

[00:04:17] Mark Corbett: Yep. Let's see, brother. Well, like I said, what has been the force behind all this last week you were saying, and I were talking, you know, we were both talking about the whole idea about kind of a lack of energy where something was missing and the, the dugouts, they just weren't putting it together. Popping, you know, we look at Randy, we look at yondi in certain instances, and it's like, what's happening out there.

[00:04:42] Mark Corbett: The energy just wasn't happening, but then there's a, uh, not surprising. We see this article come out in the Tampa Bay times and see here. And we're going to read just part of it here. The Armstrong. Uh, sorry, then Armstrong, meaning the pitcher, heard Richie Palacios, the 26 year old newcomer, in his 28th game with the Rays, offering strong and colorful words of encouragement from his position at second base.

[00:05:09] Mark Corbett: It was like with, uh, some other dialogue in the middle of him saying, let's go, let's go army. And he's like, we effing got you. We believe in you. He says, hearing him yelling that to me in a base load situation, it fired me up. Armstrong said, I was exhausted facing that last guy with the workload that I'd had.

[00:05:29] Mark Corbett: But, but hearing that behind me is like, that's sick for a young guy. I've only played with this year. It's got a, it's got a, Got him. I feels a bit. I was like, hell yeah, that's dope. 

[00:05:41] Mat Germain: It's awesome. You know, we, I think if you think back, think back to when the rays were on that run to start last year. Right.

[00:05:49] Mat Germain: And he went in the historic run. Um, everybody was on the top step. Everybody was hanging over cheering, like. They were all engaged in the game. And I get there's a lot of turnover and new personalities. A lot of people injured. I think there's 12 people on IL. I mean, you've got a lot of turnover and, you know, people that are kind of trying to work themselves out of slumps at the same time.

[00:06:16] Mat Germain: So it's. It's normal that the energy level be low, but you have to recognize it and address it. And they did. And I'm so happy they did. I think it's important. And they got everybody involved and to say, and to look at themselves honestly, and say, am I doing enough of that? Am I engaged enough, you know, during the game and cheering guys on when I can.

[00:06:37] Mat Germain: And hopefully this is the start of that. And, You know, it just, it's funny that it starts with the uniforms because now you're like, well, is it really that they had that talk or is it the uniforms? 

[00:06:50] Mark Corbett: Well, then one thing for certain, I mean, it is happening. That's the one thing, whether it's the uniforms, whether it's the dugout talk.

[00:06:57] Mark Corbett: Uh, it's, it's an excitement that didn't seem to be there a week ago. So I am very, very thankful to see that my friend. Absolutely. Yeah, it's awesome. Let's see. Oh, well, what is it in Shakespeare? I think the Tempest. It's the first time I ever saw that phrase or heard it. And you hear the word phrase sea change and sea change as an S E A and looking for something dramatic.

[00:07:23] Mark Corbett: And I think it, uh, I think it was the wizard Prospero, you know, he's, he's looking at there and the storms coming in and he's talking, there's a sea change coming. I kind of feel like Prospero right now and say, well, what's, what's actually happening here. What's buzzing. And man, there's just been so many things.

[00:07:44] Mark Corbett: And we were looking at all these bodies that are starting to emerge from the sea as they crest in. It wanted to be a Jonny DeLuca. Oh brother, man. That he is just. Bang up. Great. I mean, I'm looking here. I think the last five games, Mat , I see. What did he do to, to, to, to, to, to, oh my gosh, he has just been absolutely kicking.

[00:08:06] Mark Corbett: It was, he, he, what is he at now? Uh, batting average of 389 on base percentage of 450. Oh, my gosh. I 

[00:08:16] Mat Germain: mean, for the month of May, I think I put out this morning that he's 11th and weighted runs created in the league for the month of May. And I mean, he hasn't been around, you know, for the season before that. So for him to start that early.

[00:08:32] Mat Germain: Hot is really significant. And then what it's done is it's actually taking the pressure off of everybody else and it's given them production from the part of the lineup that they, you know, they would have hit and miss before where now it's consistent. So, uh, Randy, a Rosalina, I think for the month of May 16th.

[00:08:51] Mat Germain: And, uh, it's just getting everybody going a little bit and then electrified. And I think it's not just his, his, um, his results. Like you can have great at bats and not get the results, but every at bat he's putting up is a tough at bat. He's on the pitches. He's tracking them. Well, uh, he's, he's fighting off a lot of tough pitches.

[00:09:14] Mat Germain: Um, I think he's just. He's refreshing to have as an option in the L field as somebody else to put in the center field, then Hosey Siri, who can sometimes be a bit of a quicker at bat or a bit of a, you know, hit or miss and, and does provide really good power. And when he gets on base, that speed is elite, but he can have some lackluster at bat sometimes some really quick at bats, which kind of.

[00:09:40] Mat Germain: You know, when you have key moments, people on base and you need to drive in some runs that those are tough to take sometimes. So that's what I think he's brought more than anything is a consistent. Okay. If we have somebody on base, we have an RBI opportunity. He's going to drive them in and have 10 RBIs, uh, over the short span of games that he played.

[00:09:59] Mat Germain: I posted it. He's, he's actually outdone, you know, just for the month of May, what Chris Taylor has done for the Dodgers for the entire season. Already. So, you know, when you look at the trade that they made, they could have used somebody like Jonny DeLuca to deepen. I mean, they're not hurting by any means, they're doing well.

[00:10:20] Mat Germain: But, you know, it's just an example of how hot he's been and how Important. He's been, and I think, uh, he saw parade is at the time, uh, was leading the raise with, uh, 18 RBI. So in, in just, you know, less than two weeks, John and DeLuca is pretty much almost, he's more than half of what, uh, the RBI is that he saw parade is, was able to drive in.

[00:10:45] Mat Germain: So 

[00:10:45] Mark Corbett: yeah, he's, he's 10 RBI since what? The third. Right. Exactly. Jeez. Pete. I mean, I can only wonder what the rest of the year is going to look like on that stat for him. 

[00:10:57] Mat Germain: Yeah. I'm hoping that, you know, all I want is consistency. It doesn't have to be at that level, obviously it's not sustainable, but, uh, I consistency I will take and the way he plays, how much, did you see the defensive plays he was making in center field where he was giving?

[00:11:13] Mat Germain: You know, low fives or high fives to Randy and talking with the guys and getting himself situated and comfortable out there without being overly aggressive. The way Kevin Kiermaier was on occasion and get some stare downs and no personality clashes a little bit because of it. Whereas Jonny seems to be willing to let the, the, The corner outfielders have the ball.

[00:11:37] Mat Germain: If it just makes sense that they have the ball because of where they were. So even that was impressive to see and fun to watch. 

[00:11:45] Mark Corbett: Yeah, I was wondering if it looked like a little crowded outfields there. Some of the time I thought like they were competing so much to catch the ball. I thought, well, Jonny's look like he's gonna get there.

[00:11:54] Mark Corbett: Oh, wait a minute to Rosarito just practically run in front of him. It's like, whoa, whoa. Welcome, Jonny. 

[00:12:01] Mat Germain: Yeah, it takes a lot of communication out there. And sometimes the fans can be cheering. Things happen quick. You're worried about the losing the ball on the roof as well, which is tricky. So, uh, you know, it's, there's a lot going on that, you know, you have to keep your ears open.

[00:12:16] Mat Germain: And especially, I don't know if Jonny DeLuca speaks Spanish or not, but I imagine there must be a language barrier as well sometimes. Uh, so you got to make sure you're listening for the right things or the right calls. Um, yeah, I, I think the Rays are in a very good place right now when it comes to outfielders, as long as Josh Lowe is really healthy.

[00:12:35] Mat Germain: Uh, and, and it's becoming crowded now to the point where you're. You're, you're wondering what people's roles are going to be in terms of Harold and Jose, um, and, and how long the Rays will be able to kind of work with that when they have two other pieces, uh, which are primarily second basemen coming up at the same time.

[00:12:55] Mark Corbett: Yeah. And that's, that's what I've been thinking as well. I thought, man, Gosh, we got a crowded outfield. I mean, we got plenty to choose from, and I guess that's a great thing. And then how many guys will you rotate through the DH? I mean, we got Harold and he'll be spending more time as a DH with, with Jonny in the outfield with Josh out there as well.

[00:13:14] Mark Corbett: So I don't know. We'll see. And Josh, what, two games, nine at bats and he had three hits. I mean, that's a nice start. Welcome back, Josh. Yep. 

[00:13:23] Mat Germain: Oh, he's so capable. I, I know they, they're resting them tonight and, and, you know, they want them to have them right for the, the New York series. And we'll have, they have a day off tomorrow.

[00:13:32] Mat Germain: So we'll have an extra, you know, two days. Um, but I think he's so critical to their long term plans for this season, uh, in terms of making the playoffs and going deep. So it's so nice to have him back, even the attitude and you watch him all smiles. Everybody talks to him. Uh, what Richie was talking about, Josh is just going to emphasize that even more.

[00:13:55] Mark Corbett: And the enthusiasm I said, across the team, you would think it was almost like winning the division, uh, the other day, I guess we may have talked about this last time out. I can't remember. I, Kevin had actually won and gone over Madden's record. The excitement with that, there's, there's all these little things that are happening, whether it be the uniforms, whether it be, uh, Jonny and Josh returning there, there's so much been happening, but I was really curious.

[00:14:24] Mark Corbett: I do have to say, man, I really thought we'd see junior Cameron Arrows come up and it didn't happen. 

[00:14:32] Mat Germain: Yeah. I mean, we've had the conversation before. I, I understand all sides, right? First of all, The Rays have assets in place, veteran assets and ones that they really like. So we're not in a period of time right now when you usually see a lot of trades being made.

[00:14:51] Mat Germain: So let's say they did want to make the, the call to call him up. Well, they're going to have to make some moves and more than likely they're not going to get. A lot of return for their assets that they're kind of trying to move. So then they're stuck sending people that they had full time roles for, or planned, or almost full time, let's say, down to the miners in order to make room for Junior Caminero, which may or may not make sense because there's no guarantee who's going to get the playing time.

[00:15:21] Mat Germain: So they're in a weird spot right now. There's moves that need to be made, especially when Jonny Miranda and and Brandon Lau get back. Right. Uh, because that second base, uh, so with a clogged out field, when you have Jose Siri, Jonny DeLuca, Randy Rosana, and Josh Lowe, that's a Philadelphia field. So then you have Jose Siri and Harold Ramirez trying to take a bath from those using the DH spot, uh, pushing, uh, maybe guys, you know, to, to have more rest and, and, and, which isn't always ideal, you know, that tends to put people in slump sometimes, um, and you have, uh, Uh, Richie Palacios and Ahmed Rosario, which were brought in.

[00:16:05] Mat Germain: And so now they primarily become infielders. Well, if you have that, and then you're bringing in Brendan Lau and Jonny Aranda, that's a, there's too many people on the roster. So there's a move that's going to need to be made. But what I noticed today. As well. And the day before was Brandon Lau is only playing DH right now in, in, uh, in Durham.

[00:16:26] Mat Germain: So there's no guarantee that his health is allowing him to play the field every day anyway. So I'm not sure how long his rehab is going to be. There's a chance it gets extended or it ends up being longer than anticipated. There could always be setbacks with either him or Jonny Aranda. Uh, Jonny Aranda's rehab is starting to look a lot better recently.

[00:16:48] Mat Germain: Um, and both of them are seeing the ball well, from what I can tell. And they're swinging the bat, you know, uh, progressively better as the more games that they're getting in their rehabs. So I don't know what to say. Like when they're ready to come up, which is what we're maybe within a week, uh, theoretically.

[00:17:08] Mat Germain: Um, then you're going to have to see a move. So that's before we talk about junior Kevin. So you've already made that move and now you're saying, okay, well now I've got this phenom best bat in the minors right now, where do I fit them? And so it's not easy. And so on top of that, you're like, if we keep them down there for another two weeks, after, you know, after they do the next call up.

[00:17:33] Mat Germain: So three weeks from now, if they wait that long, then you don't have to worry about super two anymore. And you can afford to. To put the pressure on him to perform sort of like what the Jays are doing with Vladdy Guerrero, where, where they're like, yeah, okay, you had one big year, but we're going to not extend you because we want to see what you're actually worth as you go along towards, you know, free agency, which can always backfire, obviously.

[00:17:59] Mat Germain: But it gives them that option without having to pay him the super two year, uh, that they would, you know, that they, they wouldn't otherwise have to do. So it probably saves them, you know, seven, 8 million, uh, on average. Um, so that's significant for the raise in their budget and Their strategy in terms of making the roster up as well.

[00:18:23] Mat Germain: So I get both sides. The fans are excited. They want to see junior. I've I've, I watched the game this week where he was making, he made two really nice defensive plays. One of them to his left, one of them, he actually was, had to go over the tarp to get a foul ball. Both of them were really tough plays and that happened very fast.

[00:18:43] Mat Germain: So I think defensively, he just keeps getting better and better. And, and you'll hear this from every player out there. Uh, you can always get better defensively. You're never the best and that's it. That's, you don't have to worry about it anymore. Right. Um, so, but it's nice to see him playing at that level and pushing to do that.

[00:19:03] Mat Germain: Now, having said that, I also noticed that rounding the bases and getting caught, you know, um, Getting sent home from, from third. He's not the fastest guy in the world, so there's times when we've talked about, I think, or some people have talked about putting him in left field on occasion to kind of cover, uh, the field out there.

[00:19:26] Mat Germain: Now it's not to say he can't add speed sort of like Harold Ramirez did. Right. But he's not there right now. So I, I don't think it's an option right away. Um, so when we talk about position for Junior Caminero, third base definitely seems to be the fit. In which case, you know, I, I had a conversation with, uh, Steve Kearney, uh, and I was saying, you know, It just makes too much sense to play, uh, to have Yandy Diaz DH more because of his age and you don't want him to get hurt and, and Isak Paredes, I'm almost positive would do well as a first baseman.

[00:20:03] Mat Germain: He's got great, uh, I don't want to say great range, but he makes the plays very well as a third baseman, right? And his reaction time is great. So at first base, it shouldn't be too significant for him. As long as he's able to accept the throws from, uh, from shortstop and second base the way Yandy does. So all that to say, Junior Caminero will come up.

[00:20:29] Mat Germain: Just the Mat er of having the roster shaped the right way for that to happen. 

[00:20:35] Mark Corbett: Well, and, and that's it. I mean, because looking at the strength of some of those positions and the number Really good players. We have, and it does make a difference. And I'm looking at you, I think you posted some others as well.

[00:20:47] Mark Corbett: The starting lineup tonight for the Durham bulls, you've got Brandon Lau, junior Cameron Arrow, Jonathan Aranda, Curtis Meade. So those are names that virtually every Rays fan's going to understand. They'll know some of the other ones as well, but you know, you Chang, Cameron Miser, Jake Magnum, Ronnie Simon, uh, Bob, excuse me, Rob Brantley and Carlos Garcia.

[00:21:10] Mark Corbett: But I mean, the thing of it is. You hear those names and you're thinking, wow, what, it wouldn't take that much either through health or maybe just the, a small little change in performance for them to be at the, uh, the raised level. 

[00:21:24] Mat Germain: Well, there's some MLB teams that would have a rough time beating the bulls to be quite honest.

[00:21:30] Mat Germain: Uh, but. You know, these guys are also getting healthier and trying to work their way back into Major League Baseball form, but when you look through that lineup, there's five players that have MLB time, some of them, you know, rough around the edges defensively. So that would be an issue. But I think you're you're what you're pointing out is that the The depth that they have to draw from, especially when you're looking at those names that you said, all of them are infielders in terms of the top six, right?

[00:22:01] Mat Germain: You have Brandon Lau, Kevin Arrow, Randa, Meade, Chang, all of them have MLB time. And all of them are, um, are guys that you can trust. To a certain level to, to play, you know, very well when you need them. So the rays have a luxury in terms of infielders. And I think you're going to see them use that capital to improve the pen.

[00:22:24] Mat Germain: Um, and there's a chance, there's a slight chance because of, you know, we're watching Aaron Savali tonight and he's doing very well against the white Sox, which is nice to see after the last time he faced them and gave up six runs. So, but there's, there's. Arguments for and against improving the rotation.

[00:22:45] Mat Germain: Um, Zach Lin's had some bumps in terms of his starts, uh, Val's head bumps used. We just saw a, a peppi get nailed with a 107 mile an hour , a comebacker on the leg, and that, that's not gonna tickle. He will get back to, to form from it, but deep bruises have a tendency of sticking around for at least a month, uh, from what I've seen.

[00:23:08] Mat Germain: So. It's not just, uh, Oh, okay. Now we ice it up and it's gone. Yeah. Yeah. So the, the, uh, Oh, Brandon Lau just hit a grand slam. As we're talking about it, really, really, really like that. That's awesome. Oh my gosh. Sometimes things just happen, right? It's. But, but all that to say that the, some of that, um, infield capital, like to make room for Caminero down the road or to fit in Brandon Lau or others, you know, they have a luxury in terms of what they can trade.

[00:23:46] Mat Germain: Uh, I'm, I've always compared Jonny Aranda to, uh, having a profile similar to Louis Arellas, but with more power. I think he'll get there. His bad is that good, uh, contact wise and his approach at the plate is elite. Uh, when it comes to lack of swing and miss and, and, uh, he just needed some time to get comfortable and to kind of find his way at the beginning, which a lot of players do.

[00:24:12] Mat Germain: So once he gets the playing time that he should be getting, as we saw in spring, uh, you know, his bad is just. Relentless. Um, so there's a lot of teams that could have interest, uh, Louis Soraya's, but when he, he went to the Padres, the Royals were really close to making an offer for him, uh, to the Marlins.

[00:24:32] Mat Germain: So in that example, you could see the Rays potentially having a match for a trade, if they wanted to. You could, you can make 2 million different scenarios of infielders the Rays could trade. The Angels could have interest in Brandon Lau and want to bring him aboard to help their offense out, which is just so cool.

[00:24:48] Mat Germain: Stagnant and ridiculous, but, um, you know, there's arguments for and against that, but they happen to have Carlos Estevez, uh, as a closer on a team. That's not going to make the playoffs. So do you really need a closer? If you're not making the playoffs, no, you use the capital. You take a chance on Brandon Lau just to even out the money.

[00:25:10] Mat Germain: And, uh, and then you, he has two options remaining after that, after this year that they can decide on after the fact. Yeah. Um, so if you, you know, if your ambition is to make Mike Trout and Ron Washington happy by making the playoffs sometime this decade, um, you may want to take some chances like that. Um, but anyways, all that to say the Rays have, are in a really interesting spot.

[00:25:36] Mat Germain: So they're rolling. They have five wins in a row now in the glow and grit or grit and glow. Uh, it looks like they might end up having six in a row and they, I don't know if they keep wearing them against the Yankees, but they're about to go through a stretch of, of, uh, you know, I think four series in a row against, um, AL East teams.

[00:26:00] Mat Germain: I think that's the stretch of games. They've been focused on for a long time. That's why it really hurts that Pepio is on IL and they've had to slide Taj Bradley back in to the rotation without being able to kind of maneuver things the way they want it to. Um, but I think this is the critical time. So.

[00:26:22] Mat Germain: But even before the New York series, if they have to make a move or they want to make a move, I think there's a chance that they might, and, and if not, then I think it'll be after the fact as a reflection and saying, okay, well, now we know what our problem areas are and we need to address them. And this is how we're going to do it.

[00:26:40] Mat Germain: So if I was to make a prediction, I Caminero comes up after the AL East onslaught happens. Does that make sense? 

[00:26:50] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Um, you know, we've been looking at this game tonight, looking for a sweep, but, uh, Chicago hadn't laid down just yet. 

[00:26:59] Mat Germain: Yeah, I know. They just hit a home run. They saw that. 

[00:27:04] Mark Corbett: So they brought in, yeah, two runs just now.

[00:27:06] Mark Corbett: So, guys, keep, stay loud the dugouts. Come 

[00:27:10] Mat Germain: on. 

[00:27:12] Mark Corbett: Keep, keep that 

[00:27:13] Mat Germain: grit and glow going. Savali always has issues in the, when he gets around the fourth, fifth inning. I don't, I think there's a conditioning issue with, with Aaron. I really do. And I think that there's just, he gets tired and he starts opening up when that happens and he misses.

[00:27:30] Mat Germain: Uh, and he's not missing in the right areas, um, yeah. Wow. 

[00:27:37] Mark Corbett: So, well, I hope they can come back from that. I mean, this, we, we wanted this, I know Chicago, once it, after they had, they felt like they took three from us while we visited them and I'm sure they wanted to take a couple of more back home with them and.

[00:27:52] Mark Corbett: God love them. You know, I, geez, I look at Chicago and I look at the Marlins and I think it's tough to be a fan with any baseball team, but with those, it has got to be especially hard. I mean, I still listen to good guests talk back now and then to her, Nick Murawski and, uh, Pat, his friend chatted about the socks and it's hard for that man each week.

[00:28:15] Mark Corbett: So I don't know. We'll, we'll see how. Now things roll along here for them. But my gosh, when you talked about, uh, areas for me to move to, uh, cheese from, from the Marlins, I was like, really, he's going to the Padres. I just have 

[00:28:30] Mat Germain: that trade. I'd like the trade. And I'll thank, first of all, for there's a, There's a couple of guys that are analysts that I talked to on Twitter or on X that, that were really hard on Peter Bendix for, for the state of the Marlins.

[00:28:45] Mat Germain: And, and I had to jump in and I had to tell him, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Listen, the guy's been there. For six months, literally six months, a GM hasn't even begun to impact a team within a six month period. Like, there's no plan that's been applied yet. It's being formulated, if anything. So, and he's hiring, you know, more scouting and more analytics people.

[00:29:10] Mat Germain: But I just, I kind of outlined the moves that he had made. Right. So he got Vidal Brouhon from the Rays. And when you look at Vidal Brouhon, he's been stellar for them so far in 24, like he's done a really good job. Um, and he's, he's versatile. He does, you know, Calvin Fauche same thing. He's been really, really good.

[00:29:31] Mat Germain: The moves that he, he, he's made, even there's a trade with, uh, The pirates for one of their pitchers were really, you know, uh, added a lot of years of a valuable pitcher that they can kind of lean on. And because of all their injuries, they had to use them really early. They've just sent them on today, actually.

[00:29:50] Mat Germain: But I, I think the trade they made for a raise, when you look back at the Christian Yelich trade, It's a much better trade than the Christian Yelich trade. Like the talents that they got back should fill three positions. So when you're looking at like 2025, which is when you get Sandy Alcantara back, you get all their star pitchers back.

[00:30:13] Mat Germain: They're going to be set at that point because they're going to have a young center fielder that everybody's going to be excited about. They're going to have a young first baseman. Everybody's Excited about that has a lot of power. And when you like, I, I know the Marlin system really well, they are horrific.

[00:30:31] Mat Germain: At, at targeting and drafting and, and bringing in hitters. It hasn't been since Miggy Cabrera. I think that they, you know, the, or I shouldn't say that. I know JT Romuto and, and, uh, John Carl Stanton also, you know, came from there, uh, along with, uh, uh, Yalich. So after that group, it's been devoid of like high end top end talent in Miami.

[00:30:55] Mat Germain: So Peter knows that, and he needs to change that, but he also needs the analytics to know, to tell them. The information he needs, which is what I think the, the biggest full paw of, um, uh, of Heim Blum when he went to the Red Sox, he didn't add that element to the Red Sox and it hurt him. So I think the, the smart play for Peter is to do that and actually push that envelopes.

[00:31:21] Mat Germain: And the same thing with the White Sox, they are about the least analytical team in the majors by far. So. I think, you know, it's something that they're going to have to address. And I think they know that they will do it. It just takes time. 

[00:31:37] Mark Corbett: Ooh, what time is Tim's the key? Well, looking here, still looking at the Rays, kind of jumping in here again, top of the fifth.

[00:31:46] Mark Corbett: And Tommy Pham's on base, man, looking at the x rays where they all go and she's, but now I'm running all over the place here, but doing the whole x ray thing is Wendell with the Mets now, Joey Wendell? 

[00:31:59] Mat Germain: Yes, he is. 

[00:32:00] Mark Corbett: So I'm looking at that and I see, okay, I see Tommy with Chicago. And then we saw, of course, Willie and Jake Bowers, when we were in Milwaukee, did you, did you see what Willie did the other day?

[00:32:12] Mat Germain: Yes! He called it shot with the fans. 

[00:32:17] Mark Corbett: That's awesome. You gotta love it. Oh, oh my gosh. Well, folks, if you hadn't seen it, you need to look it up. Craig Calcaterra, I saw it on his, uh, newsletter, a newsletter, cup of coffee. And. Do you correct me if i'm wrong here, but the thing was that some fans were kind of giving willie our way He was in the hole another man's on deck and They're saying right at that point they were down to, I believe.

[00:32:41] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Yeah. I think it was like five to three. And so the Brewers are down, they're playing the Royals and some Royals fans are, you know, giving Willie and I think it was, was a mean spirited, but they were jabbing him that, Oh yeah. Yeah. All you gotta do is hit a home run, break two runs in and you know, you can be in the lead and it's something along those lines, probably a bit more colorful.

[00:33:02] Mark Corbett: It's. Sure enough, the other brewer whose name is Casey moment, he got on some base on base. So now Willie has two guys out there and there it is boys and girls. There's the opportunity and Willie makes the most of it. Bam, hits that run in. And I understand as he. And by that part where, where those fans were, he just kind of gave a little wave or a gesture, but, uh, yeah, he called that one man.

[00:33:29] Mark Corbett: He said, yeah, I'm going to bring that home. I love baseball. 

[00:33:34] Mat Germain: Those are awesome moments. The fans are going to remember it. Like everybody around in that whole section is going to remember that, that moment. And now that they've shared it, you know, with everybody else, it's kind of a memory they'll have, but you gotta love that.

[00:33:48] Mat Germain: That's baseball. 

[00:33:48] Mark Corbett: Yeah, that's what keeps it fun for me. I know that it's seeing these players. Well, I sent you a little video. I shot when I was there and the brewers were playing the raise and it was many practice time. And Willie's chatting it up with Diaz and he'll be giving a hug and high fives and, and Randy's walking by.

[00:34:10] Mark Corbett: And the funny thing was the video I sent you. Was, uh, prior to something you and I saw later were, uh, what Diaz was, I think a game later was on second and things weren't going smoothly. He, he had got to second, I should say, and, and Willie was there and, uh, it was, wasn't that same amity, that same friendship level, a little, little cooler.

[00:34:34] Mark Corbett: Yeah. There was a, there was 

[00:34:36] Mat Germain: a tag jab basically. 

[00:34:39] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Oh, but he didn't appreciate it. No. No, but it's, it's part of, you know, the game, like I said, and there's always going to be changes. I was going to see players come in and out that, you know, we like, or don't like, Oh my gosh, it's four to two now. Um, yeah.

[00:34:59] Mark Corbett: Oh, it was right. So, wow. 

[00:35:02] Mat Germain: Yeah. Well, Kyle Snyder had, uh, you know, had gone out and talked to him. So, uh, it's one of those things, I think there, They're pushing the envelope with a guy they know just doesn't have it right now and kind of, um, he's trying to find his, his form. I still think a lot of it is conditioning.

[00:35:25] Mat Germain: I've noticed a lot of, uh, a lot of velocity drop through the game. Um, and you know, it shouldn't happen that quickly. If it was the 6th inning, okay, maybe. Um, but 4th inning, I mean, 5th inning, it's just It's a little bit early for that. So either he's, he's got an issue that he's working through physically or the, the conditioning just isn't there, but either way, it's, you can tell that he's just not hitting his spots as regularly from the fourth inning on.

[00:35:54] Mat Germain: And then that's not a starting pitcher at that point. That's a three inning pitcher. No, 

[00:36:00] Mark Corbett: no, I, who was it? Was it a Tyler Alexander? Um, last week and when brought in a RASMO and I thought, Whoa, Geez, things weren't going well for, for Tyler at that point for them to be bringing a RASMO in that early. And, and when tonight we're seeing, you know, Kelly's being brought in here at the, at the top of the 5th with men on the 1st outs.

[00:36:22] Mark Corbett: So, I don't know, but you got to deal with the people who are out there and you, and Kyle Snyder sounds like he's got his work cut out for him. But the, the one coach I'll stop briefly and say that I'm really glad to see things have changed. You know, that's Charlie Montoya with, with being the, the hitting coach he has.

[00:36:40] Mark Corbett: Cause I thought he has had to have been in such a funk. I would think, well, maybe that's not the right word. Just having to, uh, you know, Find the right way to get that team back. Cause so many of these great players, they just weren't doing it. Now they are as far as being an offensively fantastic. And they're going to need to do that the rest of this game too.

[00:37:00] Mat Germain: Yeah. Chad Mottola is just one of those guys that, that, you know, he knows what his job is and how tedious it can be. And I hope For him anyway, he doesn't live day to day because that would drive you insane. You're going to have to have the long term mentality as a hitting coach. Uh, because if not, uh, I mean, you're not going to last very long.

[00:37:22] Mat Germain: Your heart's going to take over, but, uh, the, the rays will get there. The, I don't, I don't know how. Decisions are made, you know, it's up to the hitter basically to try to figure it out and you know, as well as I do, a lot of the players can be stubborn. You can point them a whole bunch of information, but it's what they choose to act on and how they choose to act on it.

[00:37:50] Mat Germain: That Mat ers most. 

[00:37:53] Mark Corbett: Okay. Well, let's see here. Oh no. Another single man. Basis loaded. 

[00:38:01] Mat Germain: I have faith in Kevin though. Kevin will figure it out. It was a weak single, you know, if it was in the right direction, they would have had it. So we'll see. We'll see Kelly, but funky arm action. Like I'm, I'm actually.

[00:38:16] Mat Germain: Encouraged by the direction that he's taking. And, uh, did you see, uh, Manuel Rodriguez yesterday? 

[00:38:23] Mark Corbett: Yeah. 

[00:38:24] Mat Germain: Um, he's got some funky move, uh, on, on his pitches that, uh, I think once the rays get him exactly where they want it, uh, especially consistency wise, he's going to be, I don't want to be like Diego Castillo like, but he's got that kind of movement on his pitches where it's just ridiculous.

[00:38:45] Mat Germain: I love it. So intriguing, intriguing guy. 

[00:38:49] Mark Corbett: Well, you know, one thing I want to talk about too, is that these things always fascinate me, you know, you and I talk about major league movie now and then, and you remember the one gentleman who's the whole thing with the voodoo and his preparation with the game, because he's not hitting the curve ball the way he wants to, but it's like, got to get that rum and cigars out, but that's, uh, Uh, something Patricia Whitaker from Bally Sports did the other day about the rituals of some of the players of the Rays and see what was, oh yeah, I love this one.

[00:39:23] Mark Corbett: Jason Adam, he's the tall fella and Manny Navarro, who's not a tall fella, probably more in my range. Yeah, Jason Adam. Now he has to give him, uh, Manny, a big giant bear hug, lifting him off the ground before every game. And that's something that they both enjoy. And it's, it's a ritual for them. Um, Tyler Alexander.

[00:39:42] Mark Corbett: He says he had to eat. Huh? 

[00:39:46] Mat Germain: You think what? I think that's hilarious. I just, I, I want to see a video of it. I want to actually see it. I didn't see the video, but, or the pictures, but I think it would be hilarious to watch. 

[00:40:00] Mark Corbett: I have to find it. I'll send it. You may be posted if I can find that because yeah, that is kind of an interesting image in itself.

[00:40:07] Mark Corbett: Um, see some of the other ones here. Oh, Jose Caballero. He has to use the same exact shower in the clubhouse every single day. So if there's a 3 game stretch, he has to It didn't say he has to use it, you know, there's this one, like shower had number three, but whatever period it is, he says a shower twice a day.

[00:40:27] Mark Corbett: And it has to be that one. Uh, yeah. And, Oh, Tyler Alexander, he has to eat spaghetti the night before every start. 

[00:40:38] Mat Germain: Yeah. That's a regular one. I think. Yeah. A lot of food rituals, you know, bellies can be kind of, uh, especially if you're under stress. They can be kind of finicky. So, uh, that one I understand completely.

[00:40:49] Mat Germain: I don't, I don't know if that's a ritual, more so than a need in some cases. 

[00:40:55] Mark Corbett: Well, it used to be a lot of, uh, marathons. The night before, you'd find some place and they would serve giant amounts of spaghetti. For the runners and 

[00:41:04] Mat Germain: pancakes, 

[00:41:05] Mark Corbett: pancakes, carve it up, baby. And now the entire team, you know, they requested, of course, to continue as we talked about at the top of the show to where there's city connect unis.

[00:41:18] Mark Corbett: And let's see what's happening now. Kind of flashback to, Oh, good to raise her back up to bat. So we'll see how that plays out. So exciting. Kelly 

[00:41:27] Mat Germain: struck him out. He got him out of the jam there. So my prediction was solid. 

[00:41:32] Mark Corbett: Your honor brother, man, I was concerned. I see three men on base. Oh, um, yeah, nothing like having bases loaded and having to deal with that.

[00:41:40] Mark Corbett: That's great. That's great. So, well, I'm going to let you give it back to watch the rest of the game, but is there anything special we should talk about that we haven't covered yet? 

[00:41:52] Mat Germain: Um, I, I just think the, um, the streak and how long it goes and whether or not it goes to the Yankee series, uh, in terms of the Britain glow, um, I think the stadium issue is something we should talk about soon because they're, they're having meetings on it, uh, this week.

[00:42:13] Mat Germain: And, and taking in some information. So if anybody out there has comments or support that they want to throw at their counselors and people who actually make, uh, decisions on these things and, you know, now's the time to voice your opinion because the, the, I don't, I don't know if all Rays fans understand how critical the vote that's going to happen in June is, so if you're going to.

[00:42:40] Mat Germain: Scream and, and, and be extremely sad if the rays move out and you want to know that you did your best to make sure they stay well, the next, you know, three weeks are critical for you. Um, so I'd say, you know, get pen to paper, get out there, call whatever you need to do to kind of throw some support behind them, finding some way to make it work.

[00:43:03] Mat Germain: It's not to say it has to be one thing or the other, just, uh, you know, To let them know it's important to, to you. Um, if not, then you're, you end up being like fans in Montreal. And I lived it where they kind of throw the team out somewhere else and start playing games elsewhere. And then next thing you know, you don't have an MLB team and you're screaming to try to get one back.

[00:43:26] Mat Germain: So it happens quickly after that. And then last a while. 

[00:43:31] Mark Corbett: Well, good point, Mat . And we'll, maybe we'll dig more into that next week and certainly be looking for Mat  on Twitter at Mat , M A T underscore Jermaine, and that's G E R M A I N underscore, and I'm Mark at TheBaseballBiz on Twitter. So, those are real issues and, You know, time and again, when I talk with fans and say, well, you've got everything squared away now you get the new stadium.

[00:43:57] Mark Corbett: And I would say, no, there's other things. And we need to, it's kind of, I guess, our responsibility to, to educate folks and make sure they know, because this is a, it's not an undeal people, not an undeal. 

[00:44:12] Mat Germain: Sadly, I would say that, would you agree that if they get it signed, signed off in June, that is official, they get shovels in the ground right afterwards.

[00:44:22] Mat Germain: I 

[00:44:24] Mark Corbett: think they have to, I think that just for the sake of a positive energy with that team and her fans and people coming to the, to come into the stadium. Uh, yeah. Yeah, I think it's imperative. 

[00:44:40] Mat Germain: Yeah, the timing's right. So hopefully this time, well, maybe not this time, but let's say five weeks from now, we're talking about the shovels, you know, getting into the ground at X date.

[00:44:53] Mark Corbett: I'm looking forward to that, my friend. All righty, Mat , it's been another fun one and see our boys are up, we'll see what comes and wish you a wonderful evening and thank all of y'all for joining us here today. Always a great time talking about the Tampa Bay Rays and all the insanity surrounding it. So hope you get your grit and glow going.

[00:45:14] Mark Corbett: Absolutely. Absolutely indeed. All right, man, well, you take good care and we'll talk with you all again real soon. Real soon. All right, brother. Oh gosh. Yeah. You know, I'll be honest with you. I haven't kept up as much in the last week with all of what's going on. I knew that there was paperwork that hadn't been signed and, and that it was being held now I'm going to get back and do my homework again, because I knew that it was still waiting and everybody else else was thinking it was done.

[00:45:51] Mark Corbett: It's like, Nope, Nope, not, not yet. Uh, uh.