That was the yr they went from worst to first. They had many years of losing horribly prior to 1991. This isnt just a Tampa thing. Give it a few years to build up the season ticket holder base, and it will be much better….although I truly believe a stadium in Tampa would help as well.

(I know I posted this elsewhere, but I figured this was a more appropriate thread) Rich’s on-field interview with Riggans ended with Riggans making a plea for people to come out to support the team. I’m paraphrasing, but he commented on how they should be drawing more than 15,000 for the team that has been in first for 3/4 of the season. Rich asked if the team fed off the big crowds, and Riggans said they do. On the postgame show, there were a few callers that brought up the poor attendance,and Rich got on his soapbox and called out the transplants from NY, Bos, etc. to have pride in the team in the area where they now reside. They need to root for the Rays or go back to where they came from. Once I got home and flipped on Bay News 9, I got to hear more from Rock Riley and Roxanne Wilder on the subject and they showed a pre-game interview with Kaz where he called the turnout dissapointing, especially after coming back from a successful series in Chicago. Apparently other players like Floyd and Balfour stated the turnout is dissapointing and they supposedly also commented on how the team feeds off the crowd.

Rays fans or not, fans of baseball should be going to these games. I started going in 2005 after moving to the area, and my girlfriend and I made it to about 20-25 games at the Trop, and I was a friggin’ Red Sox fan. I was a fan of baseball first, though, and I wanted to see Major League baseball live. I didn’t care that I was watching the worst team in baseball, and I enjoyed myself everytime I went. I was one of those "I’m a Devil Rays fan except for when the Red Sox are in town" guys. By the end of 2005, I found it hard to not support the home team full time, and my Sox hat had become my dirty, stinkin’ yard hat. I replaced it with a few new Devil Rays hats, and I proudly wore them all the time. I have been a (Devil) Rays fan ever since. There are only 30 f’n teams in the whole country. We in this area and the areas surrounding the other 29 teams are privileged to have the opportunity to go to games. If you are a baseball fan, do yourself a favor and drag your ass out to the games. I’m not asking people to change their loyalties at this point. I’m asking people to come out and enjoy GOOD Major League baseball LIVE. We have millions of people in this region, yet apparently we only seem to have 12,000-40,000 baseball fans who enjoy watching live games on a regular basis. With the population we have in this region, I see no reason why this team should have less than 25,000/game in the stands. I understand that there are people living in caves that still haven’t caught on to the fact that this team is entertaining and is worth the trip to the Trop to see in person. I understand that the season ticket numbers are low for this year and that increased attendance doesn’t really occur until after a team starts winning. The team has been winning all season, and there’s no excuse for low attendance in the midst of the best Rays season ever in the toughtest division in baseball. Tickets are dirt cheap. Parking is cheap or free if you are resourceful. You can bring your own food. Blah, blah, blah. This has all been said before on this board, but I don’t know if it sinks in. People, spread the word to the non-believers. The team is great. The Trop is great. Baseball is great. It doesn’t matter that your team is not the Rays. Come out to the games!!! If you like baseball, you will not be disappointed.

I’m a die hard Ray fan & it upsets me to no end to see these very low attendences. What the hell do you want Tampa? What the hell is it gonna take to get your sorry lazy asses out to the ballpark. I live 6 to 6 & a half hours away(Panama City Beach, FL) & I plan atleast a couple of major trips a year to go see the Rays play at the Trop, which usually amounts to about 10 games a year. Where are the fans? You people are going to lose your team if you people in the Tampa-St.Pete area don’t start showing up at the games on a regular basis. I know for a fact that if I lived in Tampa or St. Pete, I would be at almost every single home game. I know people have other interests & obligations, but give me a bleeping break! Your team is young, exciting, & in first place. The Rays have one hell of a product they are puting on the field & they still can’t get the fans on a consistant basis. It is a joke! It pains me to see it. You Ray fans don’t need a damn concert after every single damn game. The team’s play should sell itself! It is an absolute shame that the Rays can’t get people to come watch them play. It pisses me off beyond belief. Come on fans! Get off your dead asses & get to the damn ballpark & support your damn team!

Buck M. – “Everybody is enjoying the Rays except for the Rays fans.” Yet another dig at the region.

Even though I would take offense when I would hear the media bash the fans in the bay area for not supporting the Rays in person, the way I look at it now is if the media keeps talking about the low attendance and we keep talking about it, it might actually motivate some people to get out to the ballpark. They might decide it’s time to check out the Rays in person. I say that any publicity on this topic is good publicity right now.

I think we will see a big boost in season ticket sales in 2009, especially if we make some noise in the 2008 playoffs. That should get the entire area excited.

If the fans don’t come out in 2009, then they probably never will. And Stu will have to make a decision which nobody could reasonably blame him for.

I don’t pay close attention, but we probably average about 70mph for the trip…80mph on I75, and then it varies on I275 know roughly when I leave and when I get there. There are no stopwatches involved.

The attendence has been disapointing of course, but I do take pride in the fact that the fans that do go to games are some of the best and loudest fans in the game. Originally from St. Pete, this season I have moved from NYC to San Fran and have made it to six Rays games: 3 at the Trop, 2 at Yankee Stadium, and 1 in Oakland. I have met a lot of people everywhere rooting for the Rays (America loves the underdog after all), but it always comes back to how poor the attendence is, or how bad the stadium is. I always try to defend it. The games at the Trop this season were great, lots of energy and very loud. At the out of town games, there were actually other Rays fans, loud and proud. It’s catching on, it should be faster, but it’s catching on at least. The Rays are starting to have a really good core fanbase, and no matter how this season ends, it should be much better next year. I really wish I could be back in St. Pete, going to every game…..but with a little luck it will be the Rays vs. Angels in a AL championship match-up and I will be there! Go Rays!