Rays and Rowdies Announce Business Personnel Title Changes and Promotions
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.—The Tampa Bay Rays and Tampa Bay Rowdies have announced internal promotions and title changes across various departments including marketing & creative, security, communications, community engagement, procurement, and soccer operations.
Tampa Bay Rays
Yanna Boutzoukas, Vice President, Marketing
Brian Deck, Vice President, Security
David Egles, Vice President, Community Engagement & Executive Director, Rays Foundation
Kim Couts, Senior Director, Communications & Player/Alumni Relations
Stephon Thomas, Senior Director, Procurement
Devyn Amara, Director, Communications & Media Relations
Vince Caffiero, Creative Director
William Wetzel, Director, Community Engagement
Tampa Bay Rowdies
Juan Serna, Director, Soccer Operations
Yanna Boutzoukas enters her third season with the Rays and first as Vice President of Marketing & Promotions where she oversees advertising, promotions, digital, and experiential marketing. Prior to the Rays, Boutzoukas spent 10 years with the Florida Gators, most recently as Director of Marketing.
Brian Deck joined the Rays in 2024 as Senior Director, Security. Deck had previously served three seasons as Senior Director of Security at Gillette Stadium with the New England Patriots. Deck’s federal service includes a 23-year career with the United States Secret Service, where he managed and led security operations at the highest levels, including the Presidential Protective Division. Deck was eventually promoted to Resident Agent in Charge of a regional field office before retiring in 2021. Brian began his law enforcement career with the DC Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) after graduating from American University.
David Egles joined the organization in 2013 and oversees the Foundation for the Tampa Bay Rays and the Fund for the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Egles focuses on forecasting, budgeting, and strategic planning to ensure all funds raised are invested back into the community.
Kim Couts enters her 12th season with the Rays and her first as Senior Director, Communications. In her role, she supports all departments across the organization through strategic storytelling that highlights key messaging and organizational goals. Couts joined the Rays in 2015 in Corporate Partnerships before transitioning to Community Engagement in 2017, where she spent eight years prior to her current role in Communications.
Elvis Martinez joined the Rays in 2023 as Manager, Communications and was promoted to Director, Communications & Player Relations in 2024. As Senior Director, Martinez will oversee the club’s baseball communications, including player, alumni and media relations. He still serves as the primary media contact for interview requests, manages credentials and player appearances, travels with the team, and coordinates interviews for players, coaches and front office staff.
Stephon Thomas enters his 15th season with the Rays and first as Senior Director, Procurement. Thomas oversees the organization’s procurement strategy and operations, working with departments and partners to support efficient sourcing and purchasing across the organization.
Vince Caffiero enters his 13th season with the Tampa Bays Rays. Caffiero leads a team of graphic designers, motion designers, and project managers that are part of Rays Creative, a full in-house department devoted to producing engaging art for Rays partners, stakeholders, and fans.
Devyn Amara joined the organization in 2019 as an intern in Public Affairs. Amara transitioned to focus on business communications and media relations at the beginning of 2026 after seven seasons in Public Affairs managing relationships between the team, and local chambers and business organizations.
William Wetzel oversees the Rays Community Engagement department’s education, fundraising, and youth sports initiatives. Wetzel has been with the Rays since 2018, joining as an intern in the same department.
Juan Serna enters his 10th season with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. After serving as Manager, Soccer Operations, Serna’s promotion followed a year of managing high-stakes operations for international clubs like Boca Juniors during the FIFA Club World Cup and the Paraguay National Team during Copa América. Originally from Colombia, Serna graduated from Politécnico Colombiano Jaime Isaza Cadavid with a degree in Sports Science.