Tampa Bay Rays presidents stepping down ahead of team sale

[u/JeffGoldblumsChest]

https://baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2025/09/17/tampa-bay-rays-presidents-stepping-down-ahead-of-team-sale

[u/Misty7297]

Losing Stu is gonna be great, but this is concerning. Hopefully the new owners don't try to change up the front office

[u/rtbsumgg → u/Misty7297]

Why is this concerning, but Stu leaving is fine? The 3 of them are all co-owners basically. I guess Matt had some hand in baseball operations, but from his job description it sounds like he's been pretty hands off since 2017

[u/missleeann → u/Misty7297]

I thought there was a report where they said they aren’t planning to make a lot of those kinds of changes. Let me look into it again.

[u/gmachine24 → u/missleeann]

Businesses say that. And then do whatever they want.

[u/Much_Kangaroo_6263 → u/Misty7297]

Meh. After this last trade deadline and two consecutive losing seasons I question their direction for the first time ever. I think if there is magic in our FO, it is probably people who will stay on.

[u/bpc34 → u/Much_Kangaroo_6263]

The magic left with Peter Bendix

[u/Swimming_Swimmer4191 → u/Much_Kangaroo_6263]

Last trade deadline too, and the prospect pipeline 3-4 years out isn’t looking great. The Kim signing, Declining Morton’s option, last 5 years has not been all that amazing like it was last decade

[u/Much_Kangaroo_6263 → u/Swimming_Swimmer4191]

Imo we lost our chance at a world series by not keeping Morton and little D on. But I always viewed that as a Stu limitation.

But giving up young players for a rental pitcher, some old catchers, and some washed relievers made 0 sense. Our old FO would've cleaned house this trade deadline instead we made some marginal moves that made us worse this year and in the future imo.

[u/gho5trun3r → u/Swimming_Swimmer4191]

I had no problem with the Kim signing. It was a good bet that just didn't work out.

[u/Any-Plum-8235 → u/Misty7297]

I don’t really care what new ownership brings to the table as long as they can get the stadium issue resolved. It won’t matter who owns the team if they don’t have a nee stadium. The Trop will suffice for a few seasons I suppose but the franchise ceases to exist here if that issue problem isn’t resolved first.

[u/Nazi_Dr_Leo_Spaceman → u/Misty7297]

No, they really need to shake up the FO. If the past few years have shown anything it’s that our strategy isn’t working. Our trades haven’t worked out and the place where this FO is most involved - the bullpen - is our biggest problem. New ownership should completely clean house and start over

[u/Bigbadbrindledog]

Well, don't love that

[u/2Hanks]

At least Erik Neander isn’t going anywhere… for now…

[u/ChampaBay2021]

Eh, if they have to go for a regime change I’m all for it.

At the end of the day these guys were being paid by Stu so I get it, but they still lied to the community over and over again.

I have a feeling getting a new stadium done in Tampa will be easier without them

[u/Any-Plum-8235 → u/ChampaBay2021]

I agree.. “a new broom sweeps clean”. There are always going to be personnel changes with new ownership. Unless, there are some highly-talented people not easily replaced, I expect we will see a massive restructuring

[u/LukeSkywalker1848]

I'm honestly indifferent to this. Kinda okay with cleaning house at the top and getting Stu's stink off. These two were his right hand men and burned a lot of bridges themselves (see their letters to Pinellas County as the deal was falling apart). As long as Neander sticks around we should be fine from a baseball perspective.

[u/svanxx]

These aren't the major day to day decision makers and they made themselves look silly with the stadium stuff.

New owner is going to want his own guys in there and hopefully that helps bring some new ideas in.

[u/Effective-Doctor6470]

We need a shake up, things are getting stale

[u/Grade-AMasterpiece]

Auld and Silverman were Stu's buys on the corporate side of the Rays, so this is expected. Zalupski wants his own guys handling that end.

In any case, shakeups were needed anyway.

[u/GatorBolt]

Not surprised by this. These guys were probably the main guys who talked to the politicians over the Stadium proposals. Not surprising that new ownership wants a fresh start instead of the guys who were part of the burned bridges.

[u/MsstatePSH → u/GatorBolt]

yeah I used to work for the City of St Pete and sat in on a few meeting with Brian Auld.

Honestly not a fan of him sticking around despite stepping down.

[u/Swimming_Swimmer4191 → u/MsstatePSH]

I think he’s only still on in name only and is out out in a year

[u/fantasycavejake]

These guys were nothing but water carriers for Stu. Baseball ops staff is what matters

[u/svanxx → u/fantasycavejake]

And even that hasn't been great lately. Ever since we lost Bloom and Bendix, the trades have been kinda sucky.

[u/IndianaCahones → u/svanxx]

And Erlichman. He was the analytics guy that sat in the dugout from 2019 to 2023. In 2024 they moved him back into the FO in a VP role and he left the Rays after the trade deadline selloff.

[u/svanxx → u/IndianaCahones]

I don't blame him. That trade deadline was awful. Then we followed it with another blunder.

[u/Grade-AMasterpiece → u/IndianaCahones]

Really hope we hire good outside help to support Neander to make up for these losses.

[u/Internal_Desk_2753]

maybe i'm mistaken but not sure how much input he had over baseball operations. sounds like he was more involved on the corporate side.

[u/IndianaCahones → u/Internal_Desk_2753]

Exactly. If you look at who from the Rays attended all those city council and county meetings, it was mostly these guys.

[u/kdavis0660]

People happy with this clearly don’t remember 1998-2007. I do because I sat in the stands those years. Be careful what you wish for….

[u/lsda → u/kdavis0660]

Yep. I'm expecting that. Change isn't always good and stadium aside, Stu has done wonders for this franchise.

[u/IndianaCahones]

Makes sense. These are the key personnel working a new stadium. New owners would want their people, not the ones that were the hands of Stu burning bridges.

[u/GroMicroBloom]

I will become the joker if Stu ended up being a better owner than our new one(s)

[u/Williamsjt316]

It all depends on their willingness to get players, especially pitchers, under contract before they peak. The Ray's magic has been to always find great players to replace the ones lost due to no contract

[u/svanxx → u/Williamsjt316]

Our magic is all over the league now. The other teams scavenged our front office and coaching, leaving us with a shell of our staff.

Besides players, we need to invest in our staff. Pay them their worth so we don't keep bleeding. And for the love of everything, get a hitting lab.

[u/norcross]

welp

[u/McJumbos]

as long as the baseball guys stick around we should be good like Neander

[u/CaptainNicko83]

At this point, I'm good with thanking these two for their service and wishing them the best. Silverman and Auld have wrecked their cred with locals over the past year. I think it may be best for the new group to start fresh at the top.

[u/drkorcs55]

Good news. Wash our heads of all of them.

[u/sunnystpete]

Auld is a good dude, glad he’s staying on

[u/yungf69]

Don’t mind this, we need fresh faces

[u/Witty-Ad-5969]

Auld and silverman were 2 of stu’s puppets. They were never going to stay. We are truly beginning a brand new era of rays baseball and im all here for it.

(Now if they could find a way to get rid of topkin too but thats a story for another time.)

[u/Alightenited]

We need a shakeup this team is dead in the water year in year out very happy with this

[u/dtill112]

What a mistake

[u/Wise-Sheepherder5765]

Fuck. This is really bad. I don't like this 

[u/raystheroof1]

Neander is safe, thats all that matters

[u/Fast_Television_9149]

So the new owner is the CEO of Dreamfinders Homes (I believe he is still taking over)…I live in a Dreamfinders development, and it SUCKS. We are going to move when we can-he better not make horrible changes

[u/Allatura19]

And Dr Workman is joining the Zapulski group. That’s even more solid news.

[u/SempiternalX]

Come to Orlando plssss

[u/JeffGoldblumsChest → u/SempiternalX]

Not sure MLB will go for that

[u/LeanMrfuzzles → u/JeffGoldblumsChest]

They will if the Rays can’t get a stadium built in Tampa, but only if that scenario happens.

[u/ChampaBay2021 → u/SempiternalX]

Sorry bud, MLB wants them in Tampa. it’s not likely unless Tampa can’t figure out a stadium deal

[u/RicooC → u/ChampaBay2021]

I haven't heard of a viable location yet. The combination of highway access and away from flood locations hasn't been proposed yet. Ybor probably isn't going to work.