Kevin Boles, Manager of the Montgomery Biscuits, Developing Talent for the Majors

BaseballBiz On Deck

Kevin Boles, Montgomery Biscuits Manager has a 25 year career in baseball

First game as manager with 2 special players; Adrian Gonzalez & Miguel Cabrera

John Boles, Kevin’s dad a great mentor

Boston Red Sox in Pawtucket the “31st major league team” a great place to see the future of players working up to the major league team

How to balance Player Development while Developing Winners today

Advice to players “Don’t Be a Front Runner in Your Own Career”

Look at failures as an opportunity to learn

Players Need to develop a thick skin & give themselves some credit for coming out of failures

Double-A as a separator, see some older arms along with younger arms.

Time to move players up through minor has been reduced

If you can get into a AAA clubhouse you got a chance

Looking for intelligent, consistent & reliable player like Homer Bush Jr.

Mat notes significant trades that have impacted the Montgomery Biscuits & Rays pipeline - Jackson Baumeister, Ty Cummings, Jacob Waters, Will Simpson, Mathew Etzel, Brody Hopkins

Adjustment period for a player when settling in with a new team

Duncan Davitt commands the zone & utilizes a good mix of pitches & tempo

Cooper Kinney can flat out hit

Brayden Taylor is tough, while struggling at the plate right now he is working ,on adjustments

Kevin would rather see a player struggle in the minors & adjust before they make it to the majors

Paul Rozzelle & the hitting department are doing great things with the players

How has draft decisions for increase of hitters impacted the organization

Hopkins has a chance to be really something

Yoniel Curet has versatility & has a power arm

Stickier balls?

Automated Zones – would improve accuracy of umpire calls. It is hard for umpires to judge 90+ speed pitches

How will the Automated Zone impact the role of the catcher

Veteran pitchers may get a better call than a younger pitcher without Automated Zone

People don’t realize how tough the umpires have behind the plate

Ejections – Kevin is good for 5 a year. Ump asks “don’t you want to get animated”

Kevin’s career goal is about the players “Create the next Chandler Simpson”

Top players that Kevin seen rise through the system – Miguel Cabrera, Xander Bogaerts, Mookie Betts and any players who come up through the minors who excel in the game

RaysUp

Rays return home to George Steinbrenner Field and increase their wins

Rays Outfielders, Misner, Aranda, and Simpson formerly with the Montgomery Biscuits

Steinbrenner Weather metric

Swirling Winds, Day Games & Sun Rays disorienting players fielding fly balls

Gusts of wind 40+ MPH impacting outs caught

Lack of 2nd Tier at Steinbrenner increases wind

Should their be a new Statcast metric on the weather

Rays climb up in the standings to #2 in the AL East

Foul territory expand more ground outside of the foul lines for safety

Roster Crunch Incoming

• Ha-Seong Kim rehabbing and soon returning
• Jake Mangum and Johnny DeLuca waiting in AAA
• Who gets sent down? Walls? Mead?

With so much movement between the majors and AAA, Rays prospects in Montgomery have all the motivation they need. It’s a dog-eat-dog path to the top

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