Mark and Mat dive deep into the Tampa Bay Rays' struggles on their West Coast road trip, debate the future of baseball marketing, celebrate Evan Longoria's upcoming number retirement, and share a historic tale about Lou Piniella and Bill Gates. Rays on the West Coast The Rays' disappointing road trip to California — struggling offense, solid pitchingThe challenges of East-to-West travel and time zone adjustmentsThe third-worst team defense over the last 17 days, offset by strong pitching performancesTaylor Walls & the Shortstop Dilemma Taylor Walls' career slugging percentage at an all-time low (.280 SLUG), with zero home runs on the yearMat's criticism: Walls plays like a power hitter instead of embracing his true skill setCarson Williams tearing it up in Durham (7 HRs), but still working through strikeout issuesThe Wander Franco-shaped hole in the lineupJunior Caminero – All-Star Ballot Leader Caminero leads AL third basemen in All-Star voting at just 22 years oldDiscussion of his defensive miscues vs. his elite offensive potential (top 3 in isolated power, OBP, and wRC+ among AL 3B)Mat compares his development arc to Jason Heyward under Bobby CoxShohei Ohtani & the Dodgers Series Drew Rasmussen's strong outing — only one run allowed (a solo Ohtani homer)Ohtani's record-setting bad day on the mound — giving up four consecutive hits in one inning, something he'd rarely if ever doneMat and Mark make the case that MLB is severely under-marketing Ohtani compared to stars in basketball and footballBaseball's Marketing Problem Why doesn't baseball have a defining brand partner (like Nike/basketball or Adidas/soccer)?Mat's pitch: a Lululemon × MLB collab to bring women into the sportThe need for MLB to leverage podcasters like Jomboy and platforms like Joe Rogan to grow the gameThe see-through jersey debacle and the World Baseball Classic uniform failuresEvan Longoria Number Retirement Longo Weekend coming up mid-July at Tropicana FieldHis walk-up music (Tantric) will be played live at the eventCareer stats: 1,986 games, 342 HR, .804 OPS, .333 OBPReflections on what might have been had injuries not slowed him downMat advocates for a Longoria statue or plaque at the new Rays stadiumWomen's Baseball Mark's summer schedule: USA Women's National Team in Rockford (July 21–25), Cardinals in St. Louis (July 26–30), and the inaugural Women's Pro Baseball League season in Springfield, IL (September)Interview highlights: Ryan Woodward (International Women's Baseball Center) and Merrie Fidler (AAGPBL)Mat's vision for the Women's Pro Baseball League: barnstorming-style tournaments in MLB stadiums (Rogers Centre, Tropicana Field), a Green Bay Packers community-ownership model, and year-round momentum buildingLou Piniella & Bill Gates Lou donated his $50,000 attendance bonus to Metro United Way in SeattleBill Gates matched it — and started showing up in Lou's office to suggest lineup changesGates gave Lou a lineup one night, it worked… and the guys joke that's the secret origin of the Rays' analytics departmentMark's call: Lou Piniella belongs in the Hall of Fame — 1,800+ wins as a manager, still overlookedRays Prospect Updates Michael Forret (P): Promoted to AAA; 7 IP, 7 K, 2 ER in first start — MLB debut may be imminentEmilien Pitt (2B): Promoted to AA; 400+ OBP at nearly every minor league level, walks more than he strikes outJohnny DeLuca: Expected back from rehab by the weekendJacob Melton: Rehabbing at rookie level, showing positive signsConnor Hujsak: Added to AAA rosterOther Notes Alex Faedo, Tampa native, mentioned in connection with the Tampa Baseball MuseumRays return to Tropicana Field on FridayThanks for listening! Fingers crossed for a winning streak. Remember to like and subscribe to BaseballBiz On Deck. You may also find BaseballBiz on Deck, on YouTube at iHeart Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, and at baseball biz on deck dot com. Also you can find Mat @matgermain.bsky.social or Mark at baseballbizondeck@gmail.com and BaseballBiz On Deck with Facebook social
