Gothamite

The plaid hat is a mess so near those compound eyes. 

You missed the best part; a raccoon playing... golf?

The eyes on their new cap logo glow in the dark.

I totally forgot they changed his name for that one.  

Maybe they could be the Lektors?

3 hours ago, hettinger_rl said:

The Pioneers looks kinda like a mitten-puppet? Lower jaw is the thumb, upper jaw/face are the fingers of the mitten.

You're absolutely right.  I think it's the absence of any defining line between the red and flesh-color.   That's a very odd thing to omit, because it places less weight on the transition.  Reads more like a highlight (as they have on the cap) than the dividing line between beard and face.

True.  Wishful thinking on my part.

But they will respond to a C&D. 

17 hours ago, Ferdinand Cesarano said:

Anyway, what is the story behind that prototype Yankee road uniform?

It's eBay, there may not actually be any story. And even if the jersey is genuine, it's doubtful that the story accompanied it. 

9 hours ago, the admiral said:

Probably less than it seems given how many other teams they have to play and the likelihood that a lot of people are paying for the out-of-market package and watching those teams on YES and NESN all year instead of Rays games. I mean, Yanks/Sawx games not taken national add up to, what, 34 games out of 150ish local telecasts?

Any bump can be significant when we're talking about decent-but-not-outstanding ratings.

1 minute ago, the admiral said:

But the Rays do get good TV ratings, while the Coyotes flirt with losing to infomercials.

How much of that is influenced in part by the fact they play an outsized number of games against the Yankees and Red Sox, though?

Oh, yeah.  I know.  It's not the same situation.  But soccer also has weekday games, and that doesn't seem to deter the Rowdies' fans.   Just think it's interesting that Bill Edwards is staking the very future of his team on the same area that the apologists keep telling us is box-office poison.

This, however:

5 minutes ago, McCarthy said:

the reason the hockey team does just fine in Tampa is the location of the arena. 

is totally unproven. 

1 hour ago, McCarthy said:

And I really do think Tampa's baseball situation is as simple as stadium location. The Lightning have done well because of a centrally located facility. 

I dunno about that.   We'll see if the Tampa Bay Rowdies get into MLS, because they've been drawing pretty well by minor-league standards in a park every bit as "out of the way".  And their plan to expand the stadium in the same location means they're expecting to surpass the Rays' average attendance.

2 hours ago, insert name said:

1980s New York Mets uniform proposal.

http://www.metspolice.com/2012/05/01/the-mysterious-mets-prototype-jersey/

Ugh, double outlines.  

And is that a crew-neck pullover?

Yeah, still not good but nowhere near as bad.

Hey. I'm not the one who started calling out the team for terrible attendance.  Their own players were.

I didn't mean to ignore anything - I'm glad to hear that in his experience, the fanbase is growing.  But that isn't reflected in the numbers; the basic fact that their attendance is still pathetic, worst in the majors by a long shot.  Even boosted by an outsize number of games against the Yankees and Red Sox, traditionally two of the larger-drawing clubs.  And no amount of excuses can wish that away.

It was never my intention to insult anybody.  And frankly, I'm not sure how anyone could reasonably take that away from my remarks.  I do not doubt that the Tampa Bay area is full of fine people.  I have visited it, and enjoyed myself.  I have also strongly advocated for St. Petersburg to get an MLS franchise, and really hope that comes later this year.   Nor am I a fan of franchise moves, hailing from two cities still bearing the decades-old scars of moves past.

@raysox, I am genuinely sorry if you interpreted my remarks as an insult.  I did not intend them as such, and will try to phrase my words better in the past to avoid giving anyone that impression next time.

But saying that the area hasn't supported their MLB franchise even in good times is not an insult, it's a statement of fact.  And it's a value-neutral one as well, since there's no moral obligation to patronize a major league baseball club.  We have to be able to discuss those simple facts honestly.

It usually does.  

At the very least, fans come out to a new team if it does well.  But when a team leads its division every day of the season, wins the pennant, goes to the World Series, and still can't draw flies, that says something.

2 hours ago, raysox said:

than any of the other 90s expansion teams

1 hour ago, raysox said:

they have the most twitter followers

 

9 hours ago, LA_Angels said:

True baseball fans are already hard to find in the Tampa Bay area.

No, they're not.  They're just fans of other teams. 

1 hour ago, Ice_Cap said:

Especially if the Knights can't even get on tv in their home market  

Wait, what?  Did I miss something?

I will take your word on Raley Field; I honestly know nothing about it.  But it's important to note that the relatively few infrastructure improvements around the site do not in any way equal public funding for the Republic's new stadium.

I have a passionate hatred for public financing of stadiums. Infrastructure here and there is the very job of a municipality.  

2 hours ago, bosrs1 said:

Sacramento doesn't have a stadium that can be expanded to MLB standards

 

Not to mention they blew their public funding wad on the Kings and Republic. 

The Republic's stadium is privately financed.  As they all should be. 

50 minutes ago, BeerGuyJordan said:

I was never saying they get terms for that short of a stay. I was saying that attendance would hold out for about that long, at the very least. If it did tank, which I'm not convinced it would, they could reasses then.

But it doesn't work that way.  If it did then the Rays would already be gone. 

7 hours ago, BeerGuyJordan said:

I mean, sure, Omaha would be an unorthodox move. Tampa's set such a low bar, though, that it's hard to imagine them not being a step up. Even if it's only a 5 to 10 year stop gap until a larger metro area goes looking for a team.

No team is going to be allowed to relocate for only 5 or 10 years.  They'll stay put unless they get a stadium deal somewhere, which will carry with it at least a 20 year lease. 

Hmm.  I doubt it.  I can't see the other owners being willing to extend exceptions to two teams.  More likely the prohibition would be written into MLB by-laws and apply to all clubs regardless of location.