Rays wearing plaid billed hats

[Matito]

Coming from a Pirates fan, I stay loyal win or lose. It seems this area is very fickle. Bolts win the Cup, the place is packed! Then the losing starts, the attendance drops. It's sad.

So you're saying that Pittsburgh's sad right? I mean they drew LESS THAN 12,000 PEOPLE in 2003-04. No matter where you are, the casual fans won't support the team if they suck.

Remember, going to a baseball or hockey game for many is an event. It's more about the atmosphere for the casual fans than the actual game. The family of four will go to an outdoor park because it's a fun time and enjoyable, however the same family of four doesn't wanna see a game INDOORS in the middle of beautiful Florida weather when they could be at the beach, Busch Gardens, etc.

Beautiful Florida weather?

This place is too damn hot man. I hate the beach, I hate the heat. I love fishing though, so the weather finally cooling off is a good thing.

I also get annoyed when people go to sports games with me and have no interest in the sport. Seems stupid to me. My mom used to take me to baseball games and bring a magazine haha. For her it was understandable, but I can get those enjoying sports games. But going to a game with nothing but a pretend interest in the happenings going on, bleh.

Maybe we should bring back the sports of the Colesium days?

I don't suppose you'd care to admit that part of your Rays hate has to do with being a Yankee fan? They are at least somewhat interfering with what every Yankee fan considers to be their God given right to own (and I do mean "own" as in bought and paid for)the World Series every single friggin' year. Great sport, baseball, huh? A ton of excitment there... who gets to play for second place this year?

I was going to respond with something more, but your stupidity laden comments about owning and buying a championship is far too asinine to be worthy of a discussion.

Why exactly are they "asinine?" The Yankees have proven throughout the past few decades that if they don't win everything handily, they go out and outbid everyone else on whichever star player is a free agent that offseason, especially the last decade. To me, it's a lot more fun to see teams bring their own talent up through the minors or take risks on unproven players than to see them buy up superstars. If I wanted to be a fan of a team of the greatest players ever, I'd only watch the All Star Game.

[Lights Out]

Yankees payroll, 1996: $52,189,370

Yankees payroll, 1998: $63,159,898

Yankees payroll, 1999: $88,130,709

Yankees payroll, 2000: $92,938,260

Yankees payroll, 2009: $201,449,189

They were 1st in the league in payroll for all but one of those years (1998, when they were 2nd).

What was that about "stupidity laden comments about owning and buying a championship" again? Seems pretty crystal-clear to me that they actually do buy championships.

[Punch]

Yankees payroll, 1996: $52,189,370

Yankees payroll, 1998: $63,159,898

Yankees payroll, 1999: $88,130,709

Yankees payroll, 2000: $92,938,260

Yankees payroll, 2009: $201,449,189

They were 1st in the league in payroll for all but one of those years (1998, when they were 2nd).

What was that about "stupidity laden comments about owning and buying a championship" again? Seems pretty crystal-clear to me that they actually do buy championships.

Don't worry, most things that Legend says are "asinine". When someone presents a well-known fact as evidence to back up their perspective, Legend goes on ranting about how bandwagoners are so lame and how much greater he is than us because he's a loyal Pirates fan.

Seriously, Legend. The Yankees do buy championships. It's not necessarily a bad thing, so don't get all defensive.

[SilverNRed]

I don't suppose you'd care to admit that part of your Rays hate has to do with being a Yankee fan? They are at least somewhat interfering with what every Yankee fan considers to be their God given right to own (and I do mean "own" as in bought and paid for)the World Series every single friggin' year. Great sport, baseball, huh? A ton of excitment there... who gets to play for second place this year?

I was going to respond with something more, but your stupidity laden comments about owning and buying a championship is far too asinine to be worthy of a discussion.

Right, because last year's championship had nothing to do with the Yankees buying C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Mark Teixeira in the previous off-season.

The 2009 Yankees were seriously just a group of plucky underdogs.

[Lights Out]

Seriously, Legend. The Yankees do buy championships. It's not necessarily a bad thing

No, it is actually a really bad thing. The Yankees (and a couple other teams) have been watering down the level of competition in the MLB for decades now, and their willy-nilly spending pretty much eliminates several other franchises from the playoffs before Opening Day.

[Punch]

Seriously, Legend. The Yankees do buy championships. It's not necessarily a bad thing

No, it is actually a really bad thing. The Yankees (and a couple other teams) have been watering down the level of competition in the MLB for decades now, and their willy-nilly spending pretty much eliminates several other franchises from the playoffs before Opening Day.

Yes, but it creates a deep and passionate hate for the Yankees. Every team wants to beat them, and knows they have to beat them in order to win a championship. The Yankees' willy-nilly spending just makes people hate them even more, and I like that. I love the feeling of having to beat the Yankees every year.

Besides, it's not like New York wins the World Series every year. They've only won it once in the past 8 or 9 years.

[Lights Out]

I'd trade Yankee hatred for a more competitive league in an instant. I want to see franchises like the Pirates, Orioles, Nationals, Brewers, and Royals turn it around and start winning again, and that's close to impossible under the current system.

[Punch]

I'd trade Yankee hatred for a more competitive league in an instant. I want to see franchises like the Pirates, Orioles, Nationals, Brewers, and Royals turn it around and start winning again, and that's close to impossible under the current system.

I also would like to see some low-payroll teams start winning, but I've always loved the David vs. Goliath aspect in pro sports.

[IceCap]

I'd trade Yankee hatred for a more competitive league in an instant. I want to see franchises like the Pirates, Orioles, Nationals, Brewers, and Royals turn it around and start winning again, and that's close to impossible under the current system.

Well they could if their owners shelled out the $$$ like the Yankees ownership did (says the Blue Jays fan).

[Lights Out]

Well, duh, any team could win consistently if given the Yankee's resources. But a lot of teams don't, and they're forced to build through the draft, which is a long process that most fans don't seem to be patient enough for.

[tBBP]

Most teams don't have an owner like George Steinbrenner was, either...who, over the course of his tenure, rather than relying on silly gimmicks like bobblehead nights and fireworks shows and what-not and pocketing the profits, constantly invested back into his team. Do that for 20-some-odd years, win some titles along the way, get the value of your franchise up, and you'll accumulate the necessary resources (read: $$$) to do what the Yankees do and have been doing for so long...and may well continue to do.

I'm no Yankees fan--hell, I ain't even much of a baseball fan--but I respect the hell out of the way the Yankee organization has been run and is being run. They built that up over time. Make some draft picks, farm some talent, buy some more to add to it, continue beating everyone else. People hate on consistent winners...mostly because more often than not they (or their teams) can't beat them. As far as players go, you know the saying...if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, especially if that gives you the best chance at winning the championship. (And net you insane amounts of dead presidents at the same time.)

[crashcarson15]

Coming from a Pirates fan, I stay loyal win or lose. It seems this area is very fickle. Bolts win the Cup, the place is packed! Then the losing starts, the attendance drops. It's sad.

So you're saying that Pittsburgh's sad right? I mean they drew LESS THAN 12,000 PEOPLE in 2003-04. No matter where you are, the casual fans won't support the team if they suck.

Remember, going to a baseball or hockey game for many is an event. It's more about the atmosphere for the casual fans than the actual game. The family of four will go to an outdoor park because it's a fun time and enjoyable, however the same family of four doesn't wanna see a game INDOORS in the middle of beautiful Florida weather when they could be at the beach, Busch Gardens, etc.

Beautiful Florida weather?

This place is too damn hot man. I hate the beach, I hate the heat. I love fishing though, so the weather finally cooling off is a good thing.

I also get annoyed when people go to sports games with me and have no interest in the sport. Seems stupid to me. My mom used to take me to baseball games and bring a magazine haha. For her it was understandable, but I can get those enjoying sports games. But going to a game with nothing but a pretend interest in the happenings going on, bleh.

Maybe we should bring back the sports of the Colesium days?

Tell that to us that get inches of snow every winter.

Anyways, from prior knowledge, a stadium right on the Gulf would create a nice breeze to keep the heat down. And as much as sports fans like us hate the "casual fans" that don't really care, there's a lot of them and they take up a lot of the populace of fans.

[tp49]

I'd trade Yankee hatred for a more competitive league in an instant. I want to see franchises like the Pirates, Orioles, Nationals, Brewers, and Royals turn it around and start winning again, and that's close to impossible under the current system.

Won't happen. Obviously you have your head in the sand. Why should the owners of these teams bother to field a competitive team when many of them make money via revenue sharing before they even sell a ticket, hot dog, overpriced beer or a space in their parking lot. When the financials of the Pirates and Marlins were released it was plainly obvious that ownership in those two cities value high profitability over winning. Both had a million dollar plus profit before ever playing a game. You can add the Royals to this group as well though their financials weren't leaked. As a fan it sucks but as a businessman it makes perfect sense. Those guys are not likely to change their ownership style anytime soon because they're making too much money at the hands of the owners who value winning over their profit margin.

[Lights Out]

No, I'm pretty sure you're the one with your head in the sand, since you missed the second part of my post about it being near impossible for those teams to compete right now. The Yankees, Red Sox, and Mets buying up all the premiere talent in free agency and small-market-hating Boras representing all of the best players in the draft has left franchises like the ones I mentioned with no other option but to sit on their money and wait for a salary cap.

[TopCat]

CAP 'EM! SLAP 'EM WITH A CAP!

[raysox]

So how 'bout them plaid hats?

Oh, and the pic i posted here was used by uniwatch. So that's cool.

[Punch]

So how 'bout them plaid hats?

Oh, and the pic i posted here was used by uniwatch. So that's cool.

Did UniWatch acknowledge that someone posted it on CCSLC or did they just coincidentally post the same pic as you? That's cool that they did that, though.

I hope the Rays use the plaid caps during the ALDS just to mind:censored: the Rangers.

[BaltimoreFan]

Most teams don't have an owner like George Steinbrenner was, either...who, over the course of his tenure, rather than relying on silly gimmicks like bobblehead nights and fireworks shows and what-not and pocketing the profits, constantly invested back into his team. Do that for 20-some-odd years, win some titles along the way, get the value of your franchise up, and you'll accumulate the necessary resources (read: $$$) to do what the Yankees do and have been doing for so long...and may well continue to do.

I imagine the Yankees pocket just as much if not more than the Pirates and other small market teams. The difference is that the Yankees make so much more money than these teams, they actually have the luxury of "investing it back into the team" without having to worry about dud signings. The demand for the Yankees far exceeds the demand of any other team because of 1.) the fact they are located in the largest market in the country 2.) they are the most prestigious team in baseball (and perhaps all American sports). I really wish the Yankees financial statements were leaked with the other teams because I think alot of people would be shocked at how much more revenue the Yankees generate than small market teams ever could (no matter how much they win).

[kwhey]

Coming from a Pirates fan, I stay loyal win or lose. It seems this area is very fickle. Bolts win the Cup, the place is packed! Then the losing starts, the attendance drops. It's sad.

Wow, that sounds like every city in any sport that has a team.

[BBTV]

What does the idiotic argument about teams buying championships have to do with the plaid hats? Can you dopes start your own thread for that nonsense?

Back to the caps, any word on if they are going to be worn in the post season? I sure hope not - if they happen to win the thing, how silly would it look for the ever lasting photo of the winning moment to show someone with their arms up in the air while wearing a plaid cap? I'm far from a traditionalist, but there's something about a baseball cap that should just be... well, classic. I'd have less of an issue with it if they made it their permanent cap and not just a one-off, as I hate when big moments occur in one-off uniforms that 20 years from now will just have everyone confused when they're looking at history books.