Tampa Bay Rays @ George Steinbrenner - Yankees, O's, Jays & MLB DEI

RaysUp Tampa Bay Rays 285 BaseballBiz On Deck

[00:00:00] Mark Corbett: Welcome to BaseballBiz On Deck. I'm Mark Corbett. Of course, with me is Mr. Mat Germain and we're having a wonderful time here at seeing Spring training. Come to a close and that means one thing you get a day or two before the big opening day. Hey, Mat, are you getting ready for it my friend? 

[00:00:20] Mat Germain: I am, I haven't gotten any hot dogs prepped, but, uh, I'm, I'm starting to conjure up what kind of snacks I want to have for the first day or the first, , game that I get to watch in full.

[00:00:30] Mat Germain: , so I'm, I'm really amped for this season. I hope it goes off without a hitch and that all the teams get to, , enjoy a good, fruitful, and welcome distraction of a season. 

[00:00:42] Mark Corbett: Well, I'm looking forward to that too, my friend. And I was curious to see what it's going to look like in George Steinbrenner feeling for our good friends with the Tampa Bay Rays because of all the, uh, I guess covering or dressing or, um, of Rays paraphernalia on top of those big Yankee banners.

[00:01:03] Mark Corbett: I'm not sure what all they're gonna do, but it's, I did see. A local guy, Florida guy, anyway, by the name of Tampa Jay on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke8x1--7u3A&t=17s, and he and his girlfriend went this past week to a game when the Yankees were playing the Rays. Well, lo and behold, the experience was interesting, but one of the first things I heard him talking about as he was sitting down was his $16 beer.

[00:01:32] Mark Corbett: Oh yeah. Must have been imported beer. 

[00:01:36] Mat Germain: Must have been from Canada. That's it.

[00:01:37] Mat Germain: It had to be a Canadian beer. Yeah. Yeah. 

[00:01:40] Mark Corbett: Gimme a Molson, baby. Uh, no. What? I, I don't know. I just thinking about, like I said, I'm a cheapo anyway. I'm always looking to save a buck at the ballpark, and sometimes I walk away from a food just because I cannot bear to pay it, you know?

[00:01:57] Mark Corbett: I, I thought about that and I thought, are the Rays gonna have the same pricing? I mean, they may have the same company. It may be Levy's is the one who does it for a lot of the different ballparks, and I'll look it up later on. And quite honestly, if it is. They would probably charge the same as they did for spring training, if not more.

[00:02:17] Mat Germain: I don't know how that's gonna work, Mark, because correct me if I'm wrong, but let's say you had tenants at the Trop, right? And you've signed contract with them and you do relocate to the building that they're in right now. I think when they, the, the, the. Clear Avenue will be okay. When they signed that contract with the Yankees to take over, essentially for that $11 million, the the facilities, there would've been something included in that contract that said whether or not the concession operations was included and who benefits from it.

[00:02:52] Mat Germain: So my thought is that it probably included whoever they got concessions from at the Trop to transfer over if they were willing now. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I don't know whether or not it was worth or wrong 'cause I don't know what their base of operations is and all the, you know, workers where they're from, blah, blah, blah.

[00:03:10] Mat Germain: But if you want cont continuity of employees and the relationship they have with that company, I. I don't know. It could go either way, but they're good questions to ask and it'll be interesting to see, like you said, where it's going to end up, especially price wise. Um, I've, I've walked away, just like you, I've walked away.

[00:03:31] Mat Germain: I, I got free tickets for, for when I was there for the military through the USO at Yankee Stadium. So they were. Completely free, but I went and, and got a hot, like a two bite hot dog and a cup of beer, like literally five sips of beer, and they were gonna charge me $18 American for that, which back then the Canadian dollar was so low that it would've been like $30 Canadian good gravy for a two bite hot dog and a cup of beer.

[00:04:00] Mat Germain: So I completely understand what you, where you're coming from, and, uh, there's only so much you're willing to pay for these things, right? I can chew gum and I'll be fine. I'll, I'll survive. I might lose a half a pound during the game and, and I'll come out on top. 

[00:04:17] Mark Corbett: Oh, gosh, yeah. I don't think, I don't know. I, I may find myself sneaking a bologna sandwich or a pb and j in there, but.

[00:04:26] Mark Corbett: You know, I, I was, I, I was known years ago going to the theater and sneaking little Miller beers into pockets of a big, heavy. Uh, camo coat, but that's a whole other story for another time. Misspent youth brother Misspent, 

[00:04:40] Mat Germain: you laugh, but that's the way I grew up. We, we used to go to the Olympic Stadium in Montreal and my dad would literally bring a cooler full of food.

[00:04:48] Mat Germain: Yeah. And we would get $1 tickets in the stands and the, and the outfield. We were a family of seven. We'd sit out there and you. Had all the food laid out and there was sandwiches being thrown around. Sometimes we even stopped at a restaurant where back then you could get like a hotdog for 50 cents. We would pile up the hotdog in there and bring 'em in and, you know, it was allowed.

[00:05:08] Mat Germain: So, yeah, I, I still remember too when I went to Baltimore to watch the last game Jeter played there. There was a guy sitting about, you know, five or six rows aside from me, and he was, uh, he had a, like a, almost like a trench coat looking thing. And, and he would flip open the trench coat and he had like three hotdog and then he had snuck in and he would take one out and, and he, he looked at me enjoying it so much and it was wrapped in that aluminum foil and it was.

[00:05:38] Mat Germain: Still warm probably. And I was like, man, how much did he pay for those? He may, might have even made, made them at home. And uh, I was like, oh, that's the way to do it. It really is. 

[00:05:49] Mark Corbett: I, I guess if he had a big enough trench coat, he could have been there hawking some, you know, on the

[00:05:53] Mark Corbett: side.

[00:05:54] Mat Germain: Oh, you gotta 

[00:05:56] Mat Germain: have dreams, Mark.

[00:05:57] Mat Germain: You gotta dreams

[00:05:59] Mark Corbett: Mat, you know, one thing I enjoyed at the Trop was the foods that I didn't get from Levy. They had. Foods that were from, oh, different vendors around here, or sometimes different restaurants who had something there, something unique. A signature food. Yeah. And I'm really gonna be curious to see if they're able to pull off some kind of something with that, with local vendors or a local restaurant or some sort of signature food.

[00:06:27] Mark Corbett: I would've loved to have been sitting inside George Steinbrenner for like the last 48 hours, , watching whatever they're doing. And changes they're making to make it look RaysUp 

[00:06:38] Mat Germain: goes up and, yeah, making it well, well, what's the glow thing that they have? Like the, you know, maybe they're flipping it into that.

[00:06:47] Mat Germain: Who knows? That would be interesting. 

[00:06:51] Mark Corbett: That could be, that could be, you know, you were talking about eating some of this stuff and possibly losing weight if it bothered you. And all I could think of was poor Mookie Betts.

[00:06:59] Mat Germain: Yeah, he, uh, word is that they're gonna have to alert people when he's at the plate 'cause they won't be able to see him when, when he's tend to the side.

[00:07:11] Mark Corbett: Dang. He did the truth. What, what I read is he, he was normally weighs 

[00:07:16] Mark Corbett: 1 75 and he's down to one 50 from some stomach bug and. This has been going on, I think for more than a week with him. And to me it's just somebody needs to get in there and find out if he's got a giant tape worm or something going on 

[00:07:29] Mat Germain: that's, you know what, that's valid.

[00:07:32] Mat Germain: That definitely is valid. Yeah, there has to be like, um, I don't know, how long does it take to put on 25 pounds? Of weight after, you know, that gets cleared up, whatever it is. Right? Like you have to imagine that a lot of the weight he's lost is muscle. Yeah. It's not, it's not fat, obviously.

[00:07:52] Mat Germain: He's Mookie Betts he's not, you know, carrying a lot of fat. So that to put on 25 pounds of muscle, that's an entire off season normally. So I think what you're gonna see is the, the, the Dodgers. Have to kind of manage things and get 'em to a certain level before they let 'em come back. Maybe 1 65, you know, one 70.

[00:08:15] Mat Germain: But how long does that take? I, you can only drink so many protein shakes, Mark before you start Jesus, you know, they pass right through. So, um. I, I don't know if his performance will come back until like the second half, but really it's the Dodgers and they have the roster to mitigate those things in the pitching.

[00:08:36] Mat Germain: So if anything, it's an opportunity for somebody like Andy Pages to kind of, um, put his foot in a door and then show what he can do, and then maybe that's the kickoff he needs for his career. So it's an opportunity. 

[00:08:51] Mark Corbett: Well, we, we wish him all the best and I can't imagine what it's like to lose that much weight all at once and mm-hmm.

[00:08:57] Mark Corbett: Especially, as you said with him, it being mostly or up virtually with one thing all muscle with Mookie and, uh, 

[00:09:05] Mark Corbett: oh brother, I tell you what, oh, I wanna put a little plug in here before I forget. At the Tampa Baseball Museum. https://www.tampabaseballmuseum.org/ Come Monday, April 21st, we're gonna have an event and it's a book signing. It's gonna be Rick Vaughn, who's written, who's written a lot on spring training.

[00:09:22] Mark Corbett: He did one book on St. Pete and another one on uh, Tampa. But the other gentleman who will be there that evening to sign books. The book of Joe, Joe Maddon himself. So we're gonna have both those guys up there. I think it's like 75 bucks a ticket. Go to tampa baseball museum.org and their events page and you can find out more about it there.

[00:09:45] Mark Corbett: https://www.tampabaseballmuseum.org/events 

[00:09:46] Mark Corbett: Awesome. That's the closest thing to commercial I ever did. And it's a freebie to boot. 

[00:09:52] Mark Corbett: You almost should have like a wine paired with it 'cause you're involving Joe Maddon. There has to be a wine pairing, right? Like so 

[00:09:59] Mark Corbett: well there, there is gonna actually believe uh, uh, some wine and some horse Ds, those horse divers, they're gonna have those there as well.

[00:10:05] Mark Corbett: So I know I, I've heard Joe talk wine and I think he spent like 20 or 25 minutes going through his like. You know, a couple of wines that he had tried recently or whatever, and the depth that he went into in terms of like explaining everything about the wines that he was, it, it's not just like this, you know, stick your nose in the glass and that's it.

[00:10:27] Mark Corbett: He's somebody that will like, he. Really passionately talk about wine and, and is involved in it. So I don't, I don't know if a lot of people know that, but, um, he's kind of, he's, he's a odd character. He's a, he's one that everybody walks away from with a smile on their face and happy to have met him. So, uh, I wish that, uh, I wish you all the best and I hope that it's a good, uh, good event.

[00:10:51] Mark Corbett: Well, thank you bud. I think it will be too. So again, it's. Joe Maddon and Rick Vaughn will be signing their books at the Temple Baseball Museum on April 21st. That's a Monday between six and eight, but you'll need to get a ticket. There's 70 bucks each, but you get the books as well as get to meet a couple legends there. https://www.tampabaseballmuseum.org/events.

[00:11:08] Mark Corbett: And Joe Maddon Bickie said I, I've met him, I only had a few minutes to talk with him one time and at an event about a month or so ago. And Wow. I'll just leave it there. Wow. That, uh, I, I really enjoyed the, the conversation.

[00:11:22] Mark Corbett: You, I'm thinking more and more we, you're talking about injuries and everything else, so you're thinking about players that are coming up and some of the players that we have in the league, we have more and more players coming from other countries.

[00:11:37] Mat Germain: Mm. 

[00:11:37] Mark Corbett: The Dominican Republic's a big part of it. Puerto Rico is part of what we do, but a territory. We'll make it a state before you know it, but, um, geez. But there's, there's a lot of other places that players come from and it was one of these dark thoughts I had long before I thought, you know, I wonder if they would ever put up the borders on players from other countries, you know, whether they be from Asia, whether they be from, uh, Dominican Republic.

[00:12:10] Mark Corbett: But there's two other countries right now that are really catching the fire. What, what's, what's going on with that? 

[00:12:16] Mat Germain: So part of, uh, Donald Trump's travel ban includes Venezuela and Cuba as part of the equation, and depending on which team you're talking about, they have differing impacts in terms of, uh, the number of, of players that it would.

[00:12:31] Mat Germain: Effect the details on how exactly it would go into place and who would be stopped and why and how it would be treated are still vague and there's nothing concrete actually put in place yet. But the thought process is that, you know, I. Just, just speaking as a Canadian, right? Yeah. There's already travel advisories coming out from law firms telling, telling Canadians that work in the United States to be careful and to consider not going.

[00:13:00] Mat Germain: So if that's the case as a Canadian who's not in a travel ban, and then you're a Venezuelan or a Cuban and you're traveling, so. The whole focus in this case is if they were to depart the United States and try to reenter, that is when the issue would start, because then it would have to prove that they, you know.

[00:13:23] Mat Germain: That they're allowed, uh, that they shouldn't be covered under this travel ban for whatever reason. So in u normal cases, you would need something like an exemption. And, and I don't think MLB has an exemption yet, but like we spoke about before the show, before, you know, there's baseball, travel, uh, players travel in a different way, in a different route than normal people do.

[00:13:45] Mat Germain: So whether or not they would have different authorities checking 'em out before they go and when they come back. I have no idea how that process is gonna work out, but there could be complications. So as an example, right, because this is a, this is a team that has to cross the border constantly. You're looking at the Toronto Blue Jays, you have Anthony Santander, who's from Venezuela.

[00:14:07] Mat Germain: They invested a lot of money into Anthony Santander, anything. It'd be a big part of their team. If he gets stopped at the border to the point where they don't let him through, oh my gosh. Even if it's just, it takes a couple of days to clear up, that still prevents him from playing those games. And that's gonna happen constantly.

[00:14:25] Mat Germain: 'cause you're not gonna meet the same people over and over and over again. So. In their case, they are, you know, they're in a, in a tight spot now. They're starting the season facing the Orioles and the Nationals. Both of those teams have a lot of players from Venezuela and um, I. And Cuba, and they're going to Toronto.

[00:14:48] Mat Germain: So when they go to Toronto and they come back mm-hmm. Guys like Yennier Canó Baseball pitcher,, yada, yada, yada, they all get, you know, the same kind of treatment and process. So it's not just about the Blue Jays when they go on the road, it's about the teams that go to Toronto to visit them if those complications start happening on, on too many uh, occasions, and MLB doesn't address it.

[00:15:11] Mat Germain: With the exemption thing, there could be a push to move the Blue Jays to Buffalo. Until it gets cleared up, right? They've done it before for different reasons in Buffalo. So you know, they'll say there's a precedent of them playing games there. It shouldn't be a big issue. So that forces the issue to get them across the border at that point so that you're doing away with that entire problem.

[00:15:37] Mat Germain: I don't know exactly that. Honestly. There is no clear details about this whatsoever and how big of a factor it's going to be. A lot of these players do go home on occasion or they do visit places, go travel elsewhere, not just home. You know, they could have a, I don't know, they, they, Allstar break comes up and they go away for a vacation.

[00:15:57] Mat Germain: They come back, whatever the case, right. And, and those issues could pop up again. So the question is, you know, at what point is MLB going to address this? 

[00:16:08] Mat Germain: And I don't think they're the only sport. You're talking soccer, you're talking a lot of different, you know, events that take place. Um, in the United States.

[00:16:17] Mat Germain: I'm sure, I'm sure there are sporting events of all kinds, whether it's basketball, whether it's baseball, you know, it's just endless ways you could look at it in terms of how that. Is going to impact the flow of people in and out of the United States. So, yeah, that's, it's gonna be a crazy time. Mark. 

[00:16:38] Mark Corbett: Well, let's talk about the greasing of palms, okay?

[00:16:41] Mark Corbett: Mm-hmm. We're gonna talk about how that happens. I.

[00:16:44] Mat Germain: Yeah, 

[00:16:47] Mark Corbett: and we're gonna talk billionaires. I mean, there's 30 major league baseball teams. Not all of them are billionaires, but probably about 25 of 'em are, and there's probably just few that are, may just have, you know, oh, I or only have 800 million. You know, I, I can't quite get there.

[00:17:02] Mark Corbett: I'm working on it, but. I got it. So these guys have certain interests that you and I probably don't. And uh, but the thing of it is there's so much going on right now. You know, you and I were talking about potential owners of the Rays. We talked about Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. And having the family and him getting a, um, uh, geez, I can't even think.

[00:17:26] Mark Corbett: Pardon? Pardon. Thank you, sir. Getting a pardon from Trump. So you see things like that going on and you see, we're gonna talk just a moment about Jackie Robinson on MLB. But you see these sort of things happen and it's not surprising because. That we're, you can see where MLB will acquiesce to whatever comes outta the administration because.

[00:17:47] Mark Corbett: There's been something they've been able to ride on for a long time. 

[00:17:51] Mat Germain: Mm-hmm. 

[00:17:51] Mark Corbett: And if somebody in federal government wants to come after 'em with it, they can. We're talking about the reserve clause. Yeah. We're talking about, you know, whether or not basically free Market doesn't really exist in baseball because you are, you have arbitration for X number of years before you can really set what you are worth and make, you know, establish that yourself.

[00:18:13] Mark Corbett: So. That is control the major league baseball owners have had since forever. It's been challenged and some inroads have been made, but I could just see the federal government not being pleased with MLB and saying, guess what guys? You don't, you don't tell the line that thing's going away. 

[00:18:32] Mat Germain: There's 

[00:18:33] Mat Germain: a lot of different ways that they can put pressure on them, right?

[00:18:35] Mat Germain: You're talking about teams that they, they have a city and implications, so the city could put pressure on them. The governors where they are, the state, all the, the, the events and things that go on and the background and the other businesses that they're a part of outside of the baseball world, everything is going to have pressure put on them if they don't total line.

[00:18:57] Mat Germain: So this is why I don't think. MLB is going to come to the rescue. Neither will the owners. They're just gonna say, well, we're gonna try to tiptoe it until it happens, and then we're gonna claim that it's out of our hands and it's just a government initiative and we have to go along with it. So it, it just.

[00:19:18] Mat Germain: When you're looking at MLB, and I think I posted this on Blue Sky, about just 8.5% of players are from Cuba and Venezuela. So right there you're taking away 8.5% of players that have earned their role. Now, what happens to those players, Mark, let's say they can't fulfill their obligations under contract. Mm.

[00:19:38] Mat Germain: Do they get paid or do they just get released? Because we don't know how long this is gonna last. How long is the travel ban? Sometimes the travel ban can be a day, sometimes it can be a year. So during those days when they're missing games, are they getting paid? Do they, or does the team just get out of the contract?

[00:19:57] Mat Germain: You know, like there's, there's a lot of implications. You talk about the, you know, the Padres without Luis Arráez what are they without him? Uh, the, the Jays Without Santander yet, there's a lot of stars across Major League Baseball that are going to literally crush their seasoned hopes of those teams because the, of the amount of investment that went into them.

[00:20:19] Mat Germain: Now how many Venezuelans and Cubans are leading the Yankees and uh, Dodgers? 

[00:20:30] Mark Corbett: I couldn't tell you. I couldn't tell you 

[00:20:32] Mark Corbett: get 

[00:20:32] Mark Corbett: mad. 

[00:20:32] Mark Corbett: Zero. 

[00:20:33] Mat Germain: Mark zero. Who does Major League Baseball want in the World Series every year? 

[00:20:40] Mark Corbett: Boy, Yankees and Dodgers looks pretty good. Right. You know? 

[00:20:43] Mat Germain: Right. So, so what I'm saying is there's no pressure on them.

[00:20:46] Mat Germain: They all the other teams can go crumble all they want and cry and complain. Major League baseball isn't gonna care less because they have who they want in the. Main interest. So the main teams that they want be to be competing for, um, you know, the World Series every year, they're still well off without those players being active.

[00:21:06] Mat Germain: So then you mentioned, you know, the Dominican Republic as well. What if they get added to a travel ban at some point? Right. And I don't think politically that's going to happen, to be quite honest, but, you know, because they're in a different realm, but. We say that, and then I look at how we're treated in Canada as a, you know.

[00:21:26] Mat Germain: So if, if, if a travel ban were to come in place in for Canada, what happens to Vladimir Guerrero? What happens to all these players? Freddie Freeman suddenly becomes a big piece for the Dodgers and a lot of other ones. Right? So, and I think he has dual citizenship, so he is probably fine. Um. But anyways, all that to say that none of this is productive when a league is trying to put the best product on the field and wants to say that they are, you know.

[00:21:57] Mat Germain: Collecting the best talents of the world to have put them all on one stage. So just that alone, nevermind all the racism involved and the politicing and whatever it is, like just going with the factor that you want to have the best league in the world. You know, I, I think what you might see happen if that prolongs, let's say it goes June, July, August.

[00:22:21] Mat Germain: I don't know what the rules are and how it could be mitigated, but cor, the South Koreans tend to take a lot of those kinds of players in that get dropped off at during the season and in Major League baseball because they're not as strict about having been there through spring training and all the way through to the season like they are in the Japanese League.

[00:22:42] Mat Germain: But you know, some of those leagues could benefit from this kind of thing. Uh, and I know that Japanese have a big presence in Venezuela as well, so, um, there's some synergies there that would probably work. Um, there's a lot of Cuban stars that have gone to Japan to play because they didn't want to come to the us.

[00:23:00] Mat Germain: Um. So I, I don't know it, it's an odd time, Mark. I don't like it. I think I want to see the best teams. You know, that you have all these brain trusts on every major league baseball team that put these teams together with a certain, you know, I. Thought process that will get shattered through this kind of thing if it happens.

[00:23:23] Mat Germain: Um, so I'm, I hope that cooler heads prevail. Some things are put in place so that you know, if it, if you're really concentrated on the quote unquote criminals, you focus on those and you leave, you know, the professionals alone sort of thing. 

[00:23:37] Mark Corbett: That would be nice, you know. But I, I, I gotta tell you, I keep thinking back and I can't remember saying this on a previous show or not.

[00:23:42] Mark Corbett: I keep thinking back to when, uh, president Obama was in putting together a healthcare plan and Mitch McConnell was click to say, Hey, this isn't right. We, once it got into place, we are going to repeal and replace. Mm-hmm. And repeal what? Gut everything and replace, what are you gonna replace it with? Okay.

[00:24:04] Mark Corbett: So that's how we're treating people coming across the border as well. We're gonna take care of all 'em. We're no, no surgical precision to precision. See, oh, that person is a murderer and killer and everything else to be, yeah, let's send them back. It's like a good idea, but, uh, it's a real issue. And we talk, I, I, I wanna come back to.

[00:24:25] Mark Corbett: This is Jackie Robinson again, because, we'll, we'll say that, but first I wanna talk about the billionaires. The billionaires are doing fine. You know, I was looking here at some stats from Adweek had, uh, what, 71.3 million fans and, uh, attending games in 2024, and it's an increase of 11% from 2022. Mm-hmm. And yeah, so they're, they're lining their pockets pretty good with it.

[00:24:52] Mark Corbett: World Series had its highest. Viewing since 2017, uh, average of 15.8 million, uh, viewers per game. So those are some, you know, that there's money being made there and. I, if we're looking at these folks,, we're, people get concerned about what the ball players are, but it really comes about what we're spending.

[00:25:17] Mark Corbett: And I'm going a little bit here on a tangent once again, but I think it's about that, and I'm thinking about what's going on with the gambling, but the main thing I'm seeing is billionaires are gonna make money no Mater what. And this administration's gonna make sure that they do. Yeah, sidebar. 

[00:25:36] Mat Germain: Yeah, that is definitely a sidebar 

[00:25:39] Mark Corbett: sa.

[00:25:39] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Here's, here's the sidebar. Netflix has got a TV eight part series called The Residence. Mm-hmm. And it is a murder mystery within the White House. And it is very timely. Some of the reMarks and some of the topics they cover are very timely. I didn't hear 'em say anything about Signal, but you know it.

[00:26:02] Mark Corbett: The, the one line though I remember hearing through it was. Well, that person's, they're very, very rich. What? Why would they steal that little amount of money? Why would they steal that? Because that's their nature. If they can get the money, if they don't have to spend it and they get it somewhere else, that's just their nature.

[00:26:22] Mark Corbett: Oh gosh. But anyway, getting back to the impact on Jackie Robinson. My gosh, you called this, you called this Mat. We were talking, we kind of hemmed and hawed a little bit about it with, with Craig Calcaterra, and then you last week put it down and said they might not do Jackie Robinson Day Mark. I said, oh, come on, come on, come on, come on, Mat.

[00:26:51] Mark Corbett: But in the back of my head, there's another guy saying, yeah, you know, he's probably right. So. I don't know what they, they took down the dag on page, uh, and MLB took down the page on Jackie Robinson with the diversity. And after Craig Calcaterra called him out on it, guys, check him out. His newsletter, cup of coffee.

[00:27:09] Mark Corbett: It's, uh, something to see and stay in tune with. But the ugliness that came from this, what? They came back and they put it back up. They just removed some of the diversity, uh, language on Jackie in, in that page. Tell me what you're seeing in this most recent Forbes article that came out. 

[00:27:30] Mat Germain: Well, it's just basically a confirmation that just like us, they don't know whether or not it will actually, you know, be the, have the plug pulled on it.

[00:27:40] Mat Germain: But the all indications are that it's in serious jeopardy. Yeah. And that, you know, because of the language, and I think we pointed to this last week where you say the language of exactly how you read it out on that show. Basically stated that you're not supposed to put that kind of energy out there anymore.

[00:28:03] Mat Germain: So it's, it's completely DEI centric. And so they're not going to allow it, and they're not going to promote that kind of stuff anymore. So if that's the case, you really, you can't have Jackie Robinson Day. You can't have, uh, Roberto Clemente. You know, there, there's a whole bunch of, of different events that are involved in this too.

[00:28:25] Mat Germain: It's not just the Jackie Robinson Day. Um, I just don't know how like Marketing and, and spin wise, you're going to manage that now. They were able to today to. A reporter being brought into a conversation for dropping off bombs and spin it to the point where they say he hacked his way in. So the spin is always there to be had.

[00:28:48] Mat Germain: It's just a Mater of how they're going to decide to, um, shovel it towards. The masses so that they get to chew on it and decide what it tastes like. Um, so I, I'm really curious to see how that's going to happen. I, I've told you, I think it'll go a step further. I also think they're going to unretired a number, uh, which is a whole different ball of wax.

[00:29:13] Mat Germain: Yeah. Um, but, but you know, they may get away with that one because I don't believe there's any DEI language to it. But I honestly, I haven't dug in enough on that part to know for sure that there isn't. So if there is, then it will be attacked by the powers that be. Um, I. Yeah, I, you know what? Like in all of it is, is, um, sad.

[00:29:40] Mat Germain: Um, I think it's fixable though. Like the, this is going on, this is being brought forward, this is being done, and it, the intents are not. Productive, and they're not, they're not, uh, things that are making the world a better place. And I think eventually, if, if, if the right kind of, uh, people come into place.

[00:30:05] Mat Germain: It's a quick bounce back to kind of get it right again, right? Like, so I'm not, I'm not thinking that this is a permanent move. I think this is a temporary, uh, you know, we've, we've kind of gone too far sort of thing. Yeah. And then eventually, um, it comes back maybe in a different way, but in, in, in a reflection of the importance and the impact that things had, um, on the world.

[00:30:31] Mark Corbett: Well, I'll be curious too to see if, uh, Ken Griffey Jr. Has anything to say about this because he's the guy who got this all started. He's the guy who went to Bud Selig and said, Hey, I'd like to wait, wear 42 in the summer. And they said, well, uh. I think Cel said, let's check in with Rachel Robinson. If she's okay with it, I'm okay with it.

[00:30:50] Mat Germain: So here's a question Mark we've seen. Oh man, I don't even want to go here. This is another dark moment. I'm sorry. In advance we saw, we saw Colin Kaepernick take a knee. Yeah. And we saw the results of that. Is there a major league baseball player that will decide to wear 42, even if MLB has a directive to not do so?

[00:31:17] Mat Germain: Will MLB tell them not to wear 42, or will it just be left to individuals and teams and whatever? And so at that point, let's say they, you know, you get on a team and, and two thirds of the team wear the regular numbers, and then a third of them wear 42. How is that gonna be spun by the media? Oh, you're a this, oh, you're a, that.

[00:31:40] Mat Germain: It's basically, you know. It's causing the chaos that they almost seem to thrive on. Yeah. I hope that that, oh man. Now I'm thinking about it. That's, just 

[00:31:52] Mark Corbett: cut it out, Mat. Cut it out. 

[00:31:57] Mat Germain: Like, I don't like where this is headed at all in my head. 

[00:32:00] Mark Corbett: No. Well it's, but it is serious. It is something that requires some reflection and, uh.

[00:32:07] Mark Corbett: We talked about these things in the past and used to say, oh, that'll never happen. That'll ever happen. Some people did anyway, but it, some things have come to fruition that, uh, that are spoiled, stinky fruit, and, uh, it just, you gotta stay strong folks, you know, gotta back the people and. I need to get it, man.

[00:32:27] Mark Corbett: I need to get a hat to have not a team logo. I need to have the number 42 right here. Wear that all the time. There must be something out there like that. There must be. There should be some, there should be a groundswell. Some Marketer out there should be picking up on this. Mm-hmm. And, uh, we'll see. Well, let's get to something a little less important and talk about the AL East.

[00:32:48] Mat Germain: Yeah, I think the, uh. So I had a long conversation today with somebody and he was trying to educate me on why the Yankees are still going to be a powerhouse in the AL East. And, and we had a, a conversation back forth like there's, there are pathways of the Yankees winning the a l east. Again, I don't want to say that it's an outright, they will never, you know, have a shot at it.

[00:33:10] Mat Germain: I just think the road to that is a lot harder than most. Um, most things, you know. Are pointing to. So far, I'm pretty well educated on what they have in their system. Uh, just because, you know, in, in all the leagues that you play, the, their prospects always seem to fly off the shelf a little bit quicker than everybody else's because they've been glorified a little bit.

[00:33:34] Mat Germain: Um, so like, I don't know how many. I think I won two of my leagues last year because I traded Jason Dominguez and, and they were giving me like four or five different players that, you know, really benefited me a lot. So, uh, like I, I, I, I like to capitalize on that kind of passion, so. So the Yankees are an interesting case because here's the equation that we have, right?

[00:34:01] Mat Germain: Just in broad terms. Right? So you lost Juan Soto, you know that Gian Carl Stanton doesn't have any elbows, and you lost LIBOR Torres, right? So three of their four best bats, um, I think it's 73 home runs total. A lot of their heart of their production. So when Juan Soto and, and Judge were back to back.

[00:34:21] Mat Germain: Obviously that wears down pitching, but, but it also drove in a ton of RBI's. Yeah. Between those three. Right. So. They carried the lineup outside of Aaron Judge. Now they brought in Paul Goldschmidt. Very, very, you know, his record speaks for itself, but also a bat that is slowing, you know, significantly. Can he bring it back?

[00:34:45] Mat Germain: I think Mat Carpenter's the kind of, you know, influx that the Yankee Gore and I don't know what else. Ignited when he got to New York and then he just became a madman for some reason. Can Paul Goldschmidt do the same? I don't know. I, I have no idea. I just know that the last two years, his bat has been significantly worse and worse and, and to the point where the cards, I think were glad to move on.

[00:35:12] Mat Germain: Um, so that's an indication of what they can expect from him. He's still a good leader. He will. Still be a good presence in the lineup, but Cody Bellinger, I think is the bigger addition that people are ba are counting on to have a really big impact offensively. He's an extremely volatile player. You're talking about, you know, MVP, get him off my team, MVP, get him off my team.

[00:35:35] Mat Germain: Like it could go either way. Like we really don't know what he's going to do. Yankee Stadium will help him out, but, so we'll put it out there. Okay. But you're taking Cody Ballinger and your, you know, Juan Soto. Yeah, that's a big loss. And then, and then you go down to, um, everybody banking on Jazz Chisholm, repeating as like having a great, outstanding season.

[00:35:58] Mat Germain: It's possible. It's, sure. So let's just say they have a whole other base. Jason Dominguez has a lot of pressure in that field. So I, my argument to him was more focused on the starting pitching without Gerritt Cole and Luis Gil, their rotation and Clark Schmidt is also hurt. Right now. Their rotation is extremely thin, so we all know you need, you know, eight to nine to 10 starting pitchers through a season.

[00:36:25] Mat Germain: So when you, even if you say Backstreet is lights out, which I, my argument to him was that generally speaking, when you sign a pitcher. To a long term deal, they tend to have a drop off 'cause they really exerted themselves to earn that big deal. Right. They tend to get injured or have bumps in the road that next year because they're so worn.

[00:36:46] Mat Germain: So, so I was like, I don't expect Max Fried to be like the complete ace, you know? And then the pressure of the Yankees earning the salary, uh, Carlos Rodón is maybe a safer bet, which is why he's starting the, um. The opening day, but you can't have just those two carrying the load in, in the rotation. And then you have Marcus Stroman who's like, I have no idea what to expect from him.

[00:37:09] Mat Germain: But who else beyond that will, Warren, you have some minor leaguers that you can try to bank on, but I. I just don't see starting pitching wise how they last through a season, uh, unless they make big additions from outside. So that was my argument to him was if they put additions from outside, that's fine.

[00:37:27] Mat Germain: They always seem to be able to build a, a pen. But that's the Yankees in general. So when I look at that and I'm thinking the lineup is gonna struggle, the is definitely gonna struggle. You know, starting pitching wise, you know, from the third spot through the fifth. I just a little bit above 500 is probably what I'm looking at.

[00:37:46] Mat Germain: So that's what I'm saying right now. And then you could argue maybe as much as 88 89 wins if you're really strong on them. But some people are predicting 94 wins, and I'm like, they're not even close in 94. So, and then we've done the, the Red Sox. I'm not gonna recap them. We've done them a lot. I think they have a few injuries.

[00:38:08] Mat Germain: They have five pitchers that are on IL right now, Brayan Bello and a couple of other ones, uh, Lucas Giolito. Uh, but they, I think what people underscore is the. The triple A depth that they have pitching wise, including an Ex-Ray, Cooper Criswell, who's doing, who's did great for them last, uh, last year. You know, they're underrated and they're, they're steady, you know, fifth, fourth starter guys that that'll be able to chip in whenever they need them.

[00:38:34] Mat Germain: That is what the Yankees are missing. Yeah. So, so like, they'll be able to ride those bumps in the road a lot better than the Yankees are, in my opinion. Um, and then you get down to the Orioles. They're back to like the Yankees thing because they had that injury with GRayson Rodriguez, where you're like, they're off kilter now pitching wise.

[00:38:54] Mat Germain: But Zach Eflin and Charlie Morton are such great leaders. Mm-hmm. Such steady presences that I don't think it rocks them. To the point where they completely fall off the map. I just think it takes them a tick back. Right. Um, that's just my personal opinion, position player wise, they might be one of the best teams set up.

[00:39:15] Mat Germain: Having said that, gunner Henderson as an injury. So, so, you know, there's a big, there's a big proponent with the Orioles of all their young core guys. Taking that next step forward and having made the adjustments and then proving, you know, that they can rise to the occasion. Right. That's, that's the feel that I get with the Orioles.

[00:39:40] Mat Germain: Um, I. I, their system has been a little bit thinned because of the pushes that they made. You know, they traded some guys to the Marlins, they traded some guys here. So now they're like at that point where they're like, the guys they bring up, they're not guarantees like they used to be. They're more like, oh, okay.

[00:39:56] Mat Germain: We think they're going to be able to fill in the role. And we'll see. Sometimes it'll be a, a gem, sometimes it'll be a dud. You know, Dylan, Beaver's an example, or, know they have a really talented catcher that they want to bring up. He, he plays a little bit of first base as well, so, so they do have some pieces they can kind of focus on and, and bring in to help.

[00:40:16] Mat Germain: But their bullpen, I think is going to be the, the big boost because they're getting some guys back. Bautista is one, so him and er, Yennier Canó Baseball pitcher should be able to, uh, to rock it back there. And Andrew Kittridge when he comes back, yeah. After, you know. The All-Star break. So that's the Orioles. I think they'll be able to ride out, you know, I put them in the middle of the eighties in terms of wins, uh, maybe a little bit, 87, 88, based on what we see right now.

[00:40:46] Mat Germain: The thing is, we don't know how much they're gonna invest on the team when they get towards the trade deadline. They have the room to add if they want it. And then you have the Blue Jays. The Blue Jays. I think we spoke about this, right? Oh yeah. The Venezuela, Cuba thing is gonna impact them. The travel in general, the, you know, where do they play eventually?

[00:41:08] Mat Germain: Do they move to Buffalo? Uh, they have, you know, apparently they've extended Alejandro Kirk and they're looking to extend Vladimir Gura Jr. Shapiro did what no GM should ever do, which I know he's not gm, he's the president, but he's acting like gm. Everybody knows this, so. He said he is going to extend Guerrero.

[00:41:31] Mat Germain: I would never announce that until it's pen the paper and done. But yet it, it, it's, it's ridiculous. I don't know if he's trying to prove to Jay's fans that he really wants to do it or if he's trying to convince Guerrero to sign it, but I, it's a bad move. I, and I think that aspect alone, let's say, let's just say Mark, that he gets his way and Guerrero signs.

[00:41:58] Mat Germain: The pressure's off. Does he have to perform as well as he would if he hadn't signed? No. I know Vladimir Guerrero Jr. I, I watched him eat ice cream on the bench of the Montreal Expos for years and years and years as a kid. He's going to go back to that ice cream machine as soon as he signs that deal. And, and, and I don't want to say that there'll be a little button where maybe he will relax and he will just start hitting the way he should and it'll be fine.

[00:42:27] Mat Germain: Yeah. But, but there is a certain edge that players get in their contract year when they're trying to earn that big deal that might have amped up his performance. What it will do is it'll make them a better destination for, uh, in season if they are in contention at all. You know, if they're looking to at, at the trade deadline and they think that they want to keep the person around afterwards.

[00:42:48] Mat Germain: Maybe they can bank on locking that player up because they have laddie signed and Kirk, so that would be kind of the angle that benefits them. In that case, their pitching is still too thin and they still have some, some. Depth and triple A that's lacking. Unlike other teams that go out and and sign a whole bunch of guys, like Connor Seabold is a good example for the Rays or, or you know, some, some AAA depth that is m lb ready and is actually going to be there to draw on 'cause like.

[00:43:19] Mat Germain: Max sch has a thumb issue. Let's say he drops off for two, three weeks. You're, you're trying to plug in those two or three starts. I don't think the Blue Jays have the, the ammunition to fill those holes and they don't have the assets to trade to go get it. That's the, the big draw for the Blue Jays. So they're, they're like the kid, you know, crossing their fingers, going, I hope, I hope, I hope, I hope I don't do this.

[00:43:45] Mat Germain: I hope this doesn't happen. I hope this, and, and they're just. Do you know what we have is what we have. So, um, that's why I think the Rays are in a great place in the ales. 'cause all those teams and all the issues that I'm pointing out, what the Rays do have is the knowledge that they did. They had a basically a 500.

[00:44:04] Mat Germain: You know, season last year, despite a ridiculous amount of issues that they had to work through that they had no Shane McClanahan, which I know we're going to, you know, that nerve issue is a little bit discerning, but it's the best case scenario. So hopefully that irritation goes away, they get 'em back, you know, by the end of May.

[00:44:25] Mat Germain: Um, they have the depth to deal with it. The big question Mark with the Rays is going to be, how impactful are the additions of Kim and Janssen? When does Carson Williams arrive? When does Chandler Simpson arrive? What does their outfield perform like? So, Josh Lowe, I have some decent confidence can break out this year.

[00:44:49] Mat Germain: I, I've seen enough in spring where his timing seems to be good. He's healthy. Chris Morrell is another, is another question. Uh, you know, I have more faith in Richie Palacios probably chipping in and Jose Caballero chipping in. But they'll need to solidify left field regardless and, and maybe even center field.

[00:45:09] Mat Germain: So a good option that I started thinking about the Angels released Mickey Mickey Moniak. And, um, looking at the performances of the Rays last year in center field against right-handed pitching, they were the worst in the league. Last, dead last with Jose Siri and, um, and Johnny De DeLuca played some and a couple of other ones, but they, they were dead last.

[00:45:35] Mat Germain: So, you know, if you were to look at Mickey Moniak, I. In, in comparison. I think he had like 30 home runs, uh, in the same amount of at bats as the Ray had 18 home runs outta center field. Again, that's mostly all Joe, uh, Jose Siri. But there his, all of their, uh, on-base percentage and slugging were about 60 to 80 points higher.

[00:45:58] Mat Germain: Uh, sorry, Mickey Moniak is than the Rays center fielders did last year. So if you want to amp up a position, I know they're hoping Johnny DeLuca. It gets there. Yeah. That's the one area that I would say the Rays need is I'm confident in the pen. The pitching depth is great, but they need to re resolve the outfield.

[00:46:20] Mat Germain: 'cause I think the infield is gonna be strong. 

[00:46:23] Mark Corbett: Well, Mat, uh, I think you're spot on with all the players and the impact it's gonna make for the Rays this year. But one thing we talked about before. Isn't the players, it's gonna be how the players respond to rain outs, how they're going to respond to excessive heat.

[00:46:43] Mark Corbett: Those are factor, uh, to, uh, different size field dimensions, I should say. Some of that. It's like playing Yankee Stadium all the time, right? Uh. Those, those are factors that I'm going to be curious to see what kind of impact that may have. Especially, I mean, we're talking about Mookie and all he's going through physically, but to a much lesser extent, but it can be more tiresome being out in that hot sun all the time.

[00:47:09] Mark Corbett: You know what, and that's goes for them, you know, practicing it goes for the bp, all of that. What do you do? Or night games? I don't know. 

[00:47:19] Mat Germain: I don't know. I, I do know the, the Rays have some guys who are used to playing the heat. The Yandy Diaz is from Cuba. Yeah. I don't think you're gonna have any problems with the Yandy.

[00:47:27] Mat Germain: He knows how to hydrate, although he do, he does get cramps. Maybe you'll see more hamstring strains because of the dehydration that comes from it. But Brandon Lowe lights. Up Yankee Stadium. He might hit 40 home runs this year if he's healthy. Uh, you know, because he loves that, that kind of, uh, environment.

[00:47:47] Mat Germain: Richie Palacios grew up, you know, in New York, loving that stadium, and he, he lit up when they went to Yankee Stadium and he played like his hair was on fire. So could he have a breakout season playing in that stadium? Ben Rortvedt grew up playing with the Yankees and, and going to that stadium often, so he's comfortable there.

[00:48:07] Mat Germain: It's like a second home, so he's going to be fine in that stadium. I have a lot of confidence in the Rays being able to adjust and do what's, I think they're young enough if they were in older team going through this. I would say, yeah. Okay. Maybe there's gonna be some issues, but almost the entire starting pitching staff is under 30.

[00:48:26] Mat Germain: The, I think Zach Litel is the only one that isn't, um, or he's close to 31 or the other. They got rid of Jeffrey Springs, who was 31 or 32. I think he was the only one that was a little bit higher up. The, the roster itself is extremely young outside of the Yandy Diaz and Brandon Lowe. So. I, I don't know. I, I'm confident in the Rays.

[00:48:49] Mat Germain: Having put together a group that can exceed expectations. 

[00:48:53] Mark Corbett: Yep. 

[00:48:53] Mat Germain: You need guys to show up and really prove it. The good thing that drives this is that they have the competition coming up under them. So if those guys don't perform, and I saw enough from Coco Montes and a couple of other guys in the minors that I'm thinking.

[00:49:10] Mat Germain: Man, it won't take much for them to pull the trigger if they think that guys need to be replaced in season because, uh, he was strong enough defensively to play shortstop, uh, play second base probably can handle third base. And his bat was well above what I saw or have seen from Taylor Walls. So, as an example, if they wanted to make those kinds of changes because they needed a boost or something happened, um.

[00:49:37] Mat Germain: It was an intriguing piece, especially if they want to keep Carson Williams down for, I think, what is it, June 29th or June? Late June, before they can bring him up before any implication in terms of the control time. So, um, we'll see. I. We'll see. I'm excited also for minor league start Mark, uh, minor leagues kickoff this Friday as well.

[00:49:59] Mat Germain: I think people often overlook that, but the rosters will be set. Uh, we'll get to see some of the changes. The sad part of it all is that you also get to see which pitchers are gonna be out for the season. Yeah. And which ones are getting Tommy John, I listed seven names. From the Rays that ended up going on the 60 day il.

[00:50:20] Mat Germain: Not all of them are Tommy John related. Like some of them will come back, I think might have got Tommy John last year and then just be finishing that off. Uh, but it's still seven, you know, an Andrew, Lindsey and Alex Cook or two that got Ray fans heard before. Um, then see they ended up getting from the Marlins, so he was one of the pieces they got recently.

[00:50:42] Mat Germain: You get to see, some of the, the talents coming up and with the bulls and, and in triple A, uh, so hopefully everybody has a stadium near them that they can get to. And, , and cheer some of those guys on as well. 'cause they, they deserve the big crowds. 

[00:50:56] Mark Corbett: They, they, they do indeed. And like I said, I always like to go to those games too 'cause I think those guys are hungry.

[00:51:02] Mark Corbett: They're very hungry. And I was mentioning earlier about Tampa Baseball Museum, one of the authors, Rick Vaughn, who's gonna be there, who's written a couple of books on spring training. One of the things he does this time of year, he goes, and for the Gulf Coast League or whatever it is these days, the Florida League Complex League, he goes out there and he, uh, keeps the score for him.

[00:51:22] Mark Corbett: He goes out there and does that and I think, you know, that's fun. That's fun to do. He's doing it officially, but hey, you know, there's a lot of folks I love going to a game and see somebody break, open a score book and out there, start scoring the game, you know, people who are involved. So, uh, I'm gonna make one more push to about the date, April 21st.

[00:51:41] Mark Corbett: It's on a Monday at the Tampa Baseball Museum, and you can see the legendary manager, Joe Maddon, who led the Rays, but then went on also to take. The Cubs to the World Series, uh, he'll be there as well as Rick Vaughn, who I just mentioned. So keep your eyes open for that, Mat. It looks like fun times.

[00:52:00] Mark Corbett: That's all I gotta say. There's a, there's a bumps in the road and I hope that gets straightened out. If not, we'll be here to criticize the hell outta him. So, uh, eh, that's what we do. 

[00:52:11] Mat Germain: We're allowed, right? Yes, 

[00:52:12] Mark Corbett: that's right. As long as, as, as of today. Yes. Okay. Oh brother. Okay, Mat, thanks a lot buddy once again for having a bit of a chat here.

[00:52:24] Mark Corbett: Yep. Seeing what's going on. Major League baseball and we hope Mookie gets doing better. My gosh. Losing 25 pounds in a few weeks. Uh, okay. I thank you all again for Joy, us here today on BaseballBiz On Deck. Any other last words? 

[00:52:37] Mat Germain: The last one I'll throw out is Tim Anderson earned a spot with the Angels. He hit 3 0 4 in March.

[00:52:43] Mat Germain: And I think that, uh, like I said, we spoke a while ago, Ron Washington seems to have influenced them, and I think you're gonna see a good season from Tim Anderson. So good for him. 

[00:52:53] Mark Corbett: All right, that's Mat, Germain. I'm Mark Corbett. Hope you've enjoyed yet another edition of Rays Up BaseballBiz On Deck www.baseballbizondeck.com. So thanks again, and we look forward to talking with you guys again real soon.

Special Thanks to the Nurses, Doctors & staff at South Florida Baptist Hospital
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 Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward

Metatags: Jackie Robinson Day, RaysUp, Opening Day, Yankees, Rays, Orioles, Jays, MLB, Brandon Lowe, Chandler Simpson, Yandy Diaz