TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online
As Trop Rocks, Rays Make Stadium Bid
Artist rendering by Tampa Bay Rays
The council is set to decide June 5 whether to authorize a referendum in November on a new downtown stadium at the site of Progress Energy Park
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: May 16, 2008
Related Links
ST. PETERSBURG - That 80-minute trek from Weeki Wachee to Tropicana Field was well worth the traffic and gas money for a couple of Rays fans sitting in Section 310 Thursday afternoon.
Howard Stapf, 89, and 71-year-old Judy Speer cheered on the home team as Tampa Bay beat the Yankees 5-2 to open up a one-game lead on Boston atop the American League East.
For a franchise that has finished last in nine of its 10 seasons, this is rarefied air.
"I came to the first game here in 1998 and this team is going places," Stapf said. "They have a young club here that's exciting. There's so much potential and the Rays are going to be good for a long time."
Speer rang her cowbell repeatedly as the Rays opened a 5-0 advantage after five innings and improved to 24-17. A year ago, Tampa Bay was 18-23 and already 10 1/2 games out of first place after 41 games.
On the same day they announced a preliminary financing plan for a proposed retractable-roof waterfront park, the Rays sank the Yankees for the fifth time in 10 meetings, winning over another new fan.
"That is a good baseball team," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi. "And the more they win, the more people will come out here. They deserve to be supported."
Although Thursday's turnout was limited to 19,976, the Rays have created a Bay area buzz with a young, hustling club led by pitching and defense.
They have topped the .500 mark for 26 consecutive days and Tampa Bay just finished off a 6-1 home stint.
After heading to St. Louis and Oakland for three games apiece, the Rays will return to Tropicana Field a week from today to begin a season-high 10-game homestand.
The former Devil Rays have shortened their name and extended their fan base, earning national attention while generating more local dollars.
"At the beginning of the season, it was tough to tell if our uptick was due to our new logo or the improvement in the team," said David Urso, regional vice president for Centerplate, which runs the Rays Team Store at Tropicana Field. "But we're seeing some of our highest per caps in just the last few weeks."
In establishing brand appeal, the Rays are also generating new stars.
Rookie third baseman Evan Longoria, who opened Thursday's game with a defensive gem, has quickly developed into a fan favorite.
"We had to wait to order Longoria shirts until he came up from the minors April 12," Urso said. "They finally came in last week and they've been flying out of here ever since."
Even Yankees fans have noticed a difference.
"I like the way the Rays are being managed - they're legit right now," said Paul Kaniecki, a 44-year-old roof salesman from St. Petersburg. "I'm a Yankee fan and the Rays are No. 2 for me, but I don't know about their fans. They're getting to be like Red Sox fans. They're not educated about baseball ... but they think they are."
Tampa Bay supporters know enough to realize things are changing, especially when the Yankees come to town.
Jacki Wolfe, 19, and 23-year-old Tom Venable drove from Bradenton to see whether the Rays could take three of four games from struggling New York.
"When I came to the Trop a month ago, Yankee fans were everywhere," Wolfe said. "Not today."
Tim Johnson of St. Petersburg brought his sons to Thursday's game and all three left with smiles and memories.
Alec, 6, and Vladi, 5, said they had a good time watching their favorite team.
"Yes, it's extra sweet to do it against the Yankees," Tim said. "I'd say the crowd today was 60-40 Rays fans. In the past, that ratio was reversed every time we would play the Yankees. Alec's already hooked on this team. I have to make sure he gets his homework done and his bath early every night so he can watch his Rays."
TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online Member Agreement | Privacy Statement | Work With Us
Post a comment
(Requires free registration.)
* Keep it clean
* Respect others
* Don't hate
* Don't use language you wouldn't use with your mom
* Use "Report Inappropriate Comments" link when necessary
* See Member Agreement for details