Tampa Bay Devil Rays Name Change?

[mjrbaseball]

I don't think they would be stupid enough to go with "Rays" and use the sun aspect for a logo -> For more reasons, see: Tampa Bay Lightning

I don't understand your reference.

If you are referring to lighting as a weather phenomenon, well, lightning is a negative weather incident while rays of sunshine are positive.

[illinirox1]

I know the Jacksonville team is the Suns...

[TheYankeeSlayer]

I think what their gonna do is just change change their name to the Tampa Rays. Simple, Still keeps their main name intact and opens up more possibilites with logos, I've been Advicating it for years.

[PeytonManningRocks]

Nah, nah, nah, we all know they should be called the Los Angeles Devil Rays of Tampa Bay....

[marlinfan]

So when I say if Hockey can do well in Tampa then baseball certainly can, that is what I am talking about.

But there is a slight difference.

In terms of hockey, the NHL went into virgin territory when it expanded into the Sun Belt (with the exclusion of the WHL's short-lived teams in Houston and Birmingham). Also, it was an area of North America that didn't follow hockey all that closely, and certainly not as intensely as the traditional northern US and Canadian markets. There were enough transplants to Florida to make a go of it. And the Lightning and Panthers have done well, though when both teams have hit hard times, attendance has flagged.

On the other hand, baseball has flourished in Florida for over a century. Not only is it the American Pastime, but it is ingrained in the many Latino cultures that predominate in Florida (Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican). It is a baseball-savvy market, and many people have their favorite teams. Old-timers likely follow the team of their childhood, which is likely what started some of the Yankees' appeal in Tampa (they used to hold Spring Training in Ft. Lauderdale, it was in my lifetime). The Yankees saw a market that they could force their way into, and as a result, they broadcast down there and have a successful following. Other people also bring with them their allegiances, so it isn't like you have an unaffiliated fan base that can be united to follow a new team.

But maybe it's more than just all this. Maybe some of these guys are on to something. Case in point? The Marlins have won 2 World Series in about a decade. But they don't draw that well - see below:

2002: 29th in total attendance, played to 23.6% capacity

2003: 28th in total attendance, played to 44.8% capacity (AND WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!)

2004: 27th in total attendance, played to 60.6% capacity (as defending champs)

2005: 28th in total attendance, played to 62.7% capacity

So what's the Marlins' excuse? Bad stadium? Bad weather? Huizenga? Some or all of the above? There must be a reason for the disinterest - you have a winning team that can't fill 2/3 of its stadium.

Those last excuses are legitimate.

Traffic is also a major issue here in Miami. The whole county is so spread out it's a pain in the ass to get places.

Furthermore, the stadium is in northwest Miami-Dade. The latino population lives in central and southwest Miami-Dade. The city of Miami is located on the coast near central Miami-Dade anyone that lives in Miami-Dade will tell you driving either northward (to Broward county) or west (to the suburbs) during the weekdays is a royal pain in the ass. A lot of the population in Broward county works in Miami-Dade. To get to Pro Player Stadium from SW Miami-Dade on a weekday is atleast a 45 minute drive.

But that's not the whole reason.......Miami in general is a bad sports town. All the professional and college teams have a hard time selling out. It's a bandwagon town........2 years ago the Dolphins were the in thing and now the Heat are the in thing to do. Six months from now the Panthers might be the in thing.

If you look at attendance it's improving every year. This year we had more 20k+ crowds and less 10-19k crowds from years since.

[brinkeguthrie]

I know the Jacksonville team is the Suns...

what is that HORRIBLE THING Castilla is wearing??? ACK!!!

[BBTV]

Tampa Bay onetes (great logo / merchandising ops)

Tampa Bay City Rollers (kind of weak)

Tampa Bay Stealers (probably get denied due to gambling tie-in)

I have a bunch more, but sadly they aren't much better than those.

[Telemundo219]

TAMPA BAY SUNS!

[edensker]

I vote for Tampa Bay Octogenarians.

[cranium]

Rowdies baby!!!!

[illinirox1]

I know the Jacksonville team is the Suns...

what is that HORRIBLE THING Castilla is wearing??? ACK!!!

A Turn Ahead the Clock Jersey. Just one of the MLB's ridiculous 90's promos. They were supposed to be what baseball would look like in the future, but ended up looking like bad soccer jerseys.

[brinkeguthrie]

outside of the Chicago WS capri pants outfits..that's the single worst thing i have ever seen on a baseball field. no wait, the all-yellow pirates. no wait, the brown and yellow padres mustard unis. no wait, the all-red Indians....

[illinirox1]

Someone has a Geocities site where they collected all the jerseys including the pink mariners jersey (yes I said pink mariners)but i cant find the site anymore...

Wohoo over 50 posts!

[leopard88]

Problems I see in the Tampa Bay baseball market:

1. The Dunedin Blue Jays, the Clearwater Phillies and Tampa Yankees all playing in the same area during the season.

That part of your theory only goes so far. The Bowie Baysox, Frederick Keys and Aberdeen Ironbirds are all within a 40 minute drive of Baltimore (with the Nationals not much farther away, depending on traffic), but the Orioles have continued to draw fairly well (relative to the league average, anyway, if not their historic heights). With the rise of minor league baseball in recent years, many major league teams have learned to coexist with nearby minor league teams.

Examples --

Phillies/Trenton Thunder/Camden Riversharks

Yankees/Mets/Newark Bears/Long Island Ducks/Somerset Patriots

Mariners/Tacoma Rainiers (is that the name these days?)

The solid markets can support multiple teams with everyone doing well. Poor management and a bad ballpark have contributed a lot more to the Rays' struggles than a handful of Class A teams.

[Jigga]

I don't think they would be stupid enough to go with "Rays" and use the sun aspect for a logo -> For more reasons, see: Tampa Bay Lightning

It wouldn't be stupid then, would it? It would play perfectly off the name of the hockey team.

[Guest darkpiranha]

Here is a link to those horrible "Turn Ahead the Clock" jerseys. Well, not all of them were horrible.

http://www.angelfire.com/blues/new_yorker/TATC.html

[stephen93]

Kansas City Wiz became the Wizards (if you can call that much of a change) and San Jose Clash became the Earthquakes.

But maybe a new league in its formative years like MLS doesn't count.

On re-reading you're probably just referring to baseball?

Don't forget also the Bullets becoming the Wizards in the NBA.

well that was only for the sake of political correctness

[Survival79]

The Devil Rays have launched their new advertising campaign, and blue is slowly disappearing from the official website.

[TBGKon]

The Devil Rays have launched their new advertising campaign, and blue is slowly disappearing from the official website.

and it looks to me that gold is replacing the blue, unless thats just because of the construction sign

[rtrich11]

To get to Pro Player Stadium from SW Miami-Dade on a weekday is atleast a 45 minute drive.

45 minutes? People in Chicago get stuck in traffic for hours for bad Cubs, bad Bears, and (until recently) bad Bulls.

My question is since there is the spring training and so many minor league teams, that the market is just too saturated? I mean, if the game is cheaper somewhere else...?

As for my first note, maybe I need to get out of Chicago!