Survival79 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Rays seem ready to dump DevilA name tweak is among changes considered for 2008MARC TOPKINPublished February 8, 2007TAMPA - When the Devil Rays unveil new logos, colors and uniforms for the 2008 season, they likely still will be known by their old name.Or at least their old last name.After considering a complete change of identity to mark the end of their first decade, team officials apparently will instead drop the Devil and keep the Rays."We haven't made a final decision, but we are leaning toward the direction of a change in uniform, a change of colors, a change in logo and perhaps a slight modification of the name," team president Matt Silverman said. "But it's unlikely we will have a dramatic change in the name."That decision represents something of a compromise, allowing the team to maintain what brand identity it has and connections, such as with the new rays tank while exorcising the devilish connotation that some find objectionable."We've integrated fan sentiments, results from focus groups and surveys into this," Silverman said.The new color scheme, expected to be heavy on blue, perhaps with yellow accompaniments, isn't likely to be unveiled until after this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leedsunited Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 They should have wiped the slate clean. Rays? Lame. Why keep that brand identity? Futility? Ineptitude? Mediocrity?And they can shove their "focus groups". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBM Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Welcome to 6 months ago. I think the name change is stupid. They don't even use the "Devil" part anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gothamite Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 They tried a halfway measure already, dropping the "Devil" because they thought the name was keeping fans away.Nice to see that the streak of thoroughly inept management is being kept alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBGKon Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Welcome to 6 months ago. I think the name change is stupid. They don't even use the "Devil" part anyway.Not really, this is recent news as of today that is now most likely official. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadSeed84 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Devil Rays just sound better than rays.What people are getting offended? Tell them to get lives, I dont think New Jersey bitches about being called the devils.Its so stupid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STL FANATIC Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Devil Rays just sound better than rays.What people are getting offended? Tell them to get lives, I dont think New Jersey bitches about being called the devils.Its so stupid.No, but other people complain about them being the Devils. Just what happens. If someone COULD be offended, they are.In the D-Rays case, I just don't really care. Stupid, sure, but I just don't care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CubsFanBudMan Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 The "heavy emphasis on blue, with possibly yellow" part was news to me. Had we had that before? (Not that it's anything more than speculation on the reporter's part.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardname Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 You'd be surprised how many nutbars are actually offended by the word "Devils". Just last year, some NJ representative tried to make it illegal for the NHL team to continue using that name. As retarded as that is to begin with, it's even more ridiculous because the Jersey Devil (for whom the team is named, NOT for Satan) is a well-known urban legend bigfooty thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBGKon Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 The "heavy emphasis on blue, with possibly yellow" part was news to me. Had we had that before? (Not that it's anything more than speculation on the reporter's part.)No, this is new news....I live near Tampa and hear this headline on the local sports radio station. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gothamite Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 You'd be surprised how many nutbars are actually offended by the word "Devils". Just last year, some NJ representative tried to make it illegal for the NHL team to continue using that name. As retarded as that is to begin with, it's even more ridiculous because the Jersey Devil (for whom the team is named, NOT for Satan) is a well-known urban legend bigfooty thing.The difference is that the NJ state senator was widely derided for his lunacy, and the Devil Rays actually changed their name once to try and placate the nuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZapRowsdower8 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Hopefully it will be royal blue and yellow, not navy blue. Royal and yellow is a way underused color combo in pro sports. I was hoping that they would keep green in there somehow, also a very underused color in sports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckeyes1 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 Tampa Bay Rays sounds weird. Just keep it or change the name alltogether. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Power Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 If they're changing to Rays and using Blue/yellow I wonder if they're going drop the association with the Devil Ray and use sun rays for their logo/imagery. I know that's been mentioned in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BallWonk Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 On the one hand, anyone who objects to the name "Devil Rays" for what they claim to be theological reasons deserves scorn and ridicule. On the other hand, it was a stupid name to begin with for reasons unrelated to church. With a few exceptions, two-word team names just don't work. Heck, three-syllable team names are usually too much for fans. "Rays" isn't much of a team name, but it's certainly more sensible than "Devil Rays" or "Manta Rays" or any other two-word appellation. As to the colors, I'm underwhelmed. Blue and green is a terrific combo, even if the Rays haven't really made the most of the combination (nor chosen the right shades of each). The AL East is just not crying out for another team to emphasize blue. It's discouraging to hear about blue with yellow accents. Sounds like the modern Brewers. It would be better for TB to use yellow as prominently as Oakland does; that would at least create a distinctive color scheme. But however they do it, blue and yellow is never going to say "tropical" to me in the way that any combination with green would. Even if they're keeping the current de facto name, the redesign should have started from first principles of brand identity. Doing so could not possibly have led to the use of the palette described. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 As someone who considers myself a man of faith, I can't begin to comprehend why some people are so frigging uptight over a team name. It doesn't bother me, nor does it offend me. I'd tend to believe it's the play on the field, not the team's moniker that's keeping fans away.. That's just a hunch though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkshadow1031 Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 I like how team president Matt Silverman refers to the name change as a "slight modification." It?s more like a neutering of the name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEANS Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 it's been just "Rays" on there uni's for some time now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicious Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 the rays feels empty to me, maybe the sting ray, sun rays, or even......the GAMMA RAYS!!! lol jkwell, i guess if they changed thier identity to something else, they would be known as the ex-rays. hmmmmmm..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eRay Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 i am all for the devil rays becoming just the rays. it isnt that much of a change, and i feel honored that they want to use my last name. if they do this though, they should also drop "bay" and just become the Tampa Rays, sounds much better IMO. I like the idea of royal blue(maybe two different shades) and yellow. no navy please. as long as it isnt yankees+yellow it should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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