Opener Big Deal For Team And Fans

NEW YORK - Tropicana Field will be full for tonight's home opener, but the challenge for the Rays remains the same - giving those fans a reason to return.

"I think people will come in with different expectations," said owner Stuart Sternberg. "Generally, in years past, they've come and they want to be there for the opening game. Now, I really do believe they want to be there for the opening game of what could be the beginning of something pretty special. This is really a complete new beginning for us, and it looks like, fortunately, we're hitting the ground running."

There is circumstantial evidence that the Rays are making progress in the big-picture sense. The team announced the sellout for tonight's game around 4 p.m. Monday, the earliest an opener has sold out since the Rays' inaugural game in 1998. And Sternberg has said the indicators he watches - hits on the team's Web site, TV ratings - have been positive.

The Rays will roll out the usual bells and whistles for the home opener. Buccaneers legend Mike Alstott and Gov. Charlie Crist will throw out ceremonial first pitches, and Tropicana Field will have a new, predominantly blue, look to reflect the team's color-scheme change. Sternberg also said a Rays theme song will be unveiled.

But nothing will ensure the turnstiles keep turning like wins, and the Rays are fully aware of that as they try to build a real homefield advantage.

"We've talked about it all along - we've got to win to bring them in the building," Manager Joe Maddon said. "If we take care of our part, I believe the fans in the Tampa Bay area will come in and take care of their part, also, and turn it into The Pit. I do believe that."

Maddon said he believes the Rays' strong spring training performance and a solid opening week on the road will help generate excitement as they return home. The team seems more eager just to be getting back to Florida.

"It's a big deal for the fans, which is awesome, because we want them involved a lot," said tonight's starter, Matt Garza. "For the players, it's just another game. We're just glad to be going to some warm weather."

UNDER THE KNIFE: After a few weeks of waiting, Ben Zobrist's fractured left thumb still wasn't healing the way the Rays' doctors had hoped. Monday afternoon, he had pins inserted into the thumb to help speed the process, sidelining him for at least two additional weeks and probably longer.

Zobrist suffered a hairline fracture on the tip of his thumb March 9 and still hadn't been able to swing a bat with both hands when he went back for a checkup Monday.

HE LIKES IT: LHP J.P. Howell seems right at home in the bullpen after a stellar relief debut Sunday in which he worked three scoreless innings behind James Shields.

"Going in there out of the bullpen, it was a little more fun, a little more at ease," Howell said. "I was just kind of watching the game and getting in the flow of it instead of trying to set the tone for the flow."

Maddon said he probably would give Howell two days off before considering using him again, but he liked what he saw in relief from the lefty who has been a starter his entire career.

"He's a different guy, a different animal," Maddon said.

NOTEWORTHY: DH Cliff Floyd was a late scratch Monday with right knee soreness. Jonny Gomes replaced him in the lineup. ... LHP Scott Kazmir will throw live batting practice at Tropicana Field before tonight's game, likely delivering 60-75 pitches to Willy Aybar, Elliot Johnson and Nathan Haynes. LHP Kurt Birkins (elbow neuritis) will face the same hitters before Kazmir.