Rays' Current Performance:

The team continues to hover around.500 mark

Low attendance figures in Oakland

2020 season with cardboard cutouts in the stands.

Oakland A’s, and how they manage to stay afloat despite low attendance, largely through revenue sharing and TV deals.

Rays’ New Stadium Prospects:

Discussion on the upcoming new stadium for the Rays and its potential economic impact, including year-round restaurants and businesses around the stadium.

Concerns about the promises made by politicians versus what is delivered in the final plan.

Local Politics and the Stadium Deal:

Insights into recent local political developments, including Mayor Ken Welch’s controversial bonuses to city employees who worked on the Rays’ stadium deal, which were later rescinded.

Wild Card Possibilities:

Mat breaks down the Rays’ chances of making it to the Wild Card, comparing the American League to the National League in terms of competition.

The Rays only need to surpass a few teams, and their pitching staff gives them a fighting chance if they can regain some momentum.

Key Players and Performances:

Jose Siri’s fluctuating performance and the importance of maintaining hustle and focus.

Praise for Kevin Cash’s tough decisions to bench Siri to send a message, which paid off in the form of a game-winning run.

Shane Baz’s recent performance & the potential impact of his return to form on the Rays' playoff hopes.

Mat provides a hopeful outlook, suggesting Rays can make it into the playoffs, their strong pitching makes them a dangerous contender.

Dylan Carlson & Uceta bringing new successes to the team

Proposed Six-Inning Minimum for Pitchers:

Six-inning minimum for pitchers raises concerns about potential strain on pitchers’ arms.

The implications of forcing a struggling pitcher to stay in the game when they are clearly not performing well

Mat’s Take on the Rule:

Mat expresses his strong opposition to the six-inning minimum, stating that he might stop watching baseball if such a rule is implemented.

He argues that this rule would favor larger market teams that can afford to pay pitchers who can dominate for six innings and suggests that this is another example of MLB’s interference to favor big-market teams.

Strategic and Health Implications:

Proposed rule would eliminate some of the strategy in baseball and further disconnect the current game from its history.

A better approach to protecting pitchers' arms would be to adopt a six-man rotation, similar to the approach used in Japan,

Teams may be prioritizing financial savings over player health, by overworking young pitchers and avoiding paying them long-term contracts

Pitchers in Japan are managed differently, often throwing more pitches in non-game situations to strengthen their arms, but only pitching once per week in games.

Mark humorously suggests that MLB could learn from Japan by temporarily suspending a struggling MLB team and replacing them with a Japanese team to teach the other teams how to manage pitchers better.

You can find Mat on Twitter x.com @Mat_Germain_

Mark can be found on Twitter x.com @TheBaseballBiz & at http://www.baseballbizondeck.com

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Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward"
Notes in part from ChatGPT