According to a report in the Tampa Bay Times , the Tampa Bay Rays are giving President of Baseball Operations Erik Neander and manager Kevin Cash multi-year contract extensions.
Per Mark Topkin of the paper:
BREAKING: #Rays give baseball ops president Erik Neander and manager Kevin Cash contract extensions. Read more here:
There are no details officially out yet, but they are expected later this afternoon. They will reportedly take the pair through the 2028 season though. The Rays are coming off a 99-win season that saw them finish second in the American League East.
Neander became the Rays' primary decision maker during the offseason of 2017 and has had the Rays consistently in the mix for the playoffs, despite operating on one of the smallest budgets in baseball. His creative trade strategy, ability to find hidden gems on waivers and the team's ability to develop has made the Rays one of the most admirable organizations in the sport. They've been to the playoffs five times since he took over and got to the World Series in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
As for Cash, he's coming off a year in which he was named a finalist for AL Manager of the Year. It's the fifth time in six years that he's been a finalist for that award, which is incredibly impressive considering the Rays dealt with blow after blow in 2023. They lost Drew Rasmussen, Jeffrey Springs, Shane McClanahan and Wander Franco for critical stretches of the season.
He's 739-617 as Rays manager, a position he's held since 2015.
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