The pending deal has been a long time in the making. The Rays talked of building a stadium in Tampa. Then they wanted to play one-half of the season in Montreal before that got shot down by Major League Baseball.
Florida Matters host Matthew Peddie speaks with Ira Kaufman, the NFL / Buccaneers columnist for JoeBucsFan.com and host of his own podcast; longtime Tampa Bay sports reporter Joey Johnston; and Mike Cairns, a sports reporter with Spectrum Bay News 9.
I’d like to ask each of you whether it surprises you in any way that the city has reached a deal with the Rays.
Cairns: I'm not surprised at all, especially with the success of the team, especially making the postseason the last five years. That's a franchise best. They've never done that before. And they've certainly drawn more and more crowds. And I think the big reason why the stadium is going to be a success here in St. Pete is because the attendance at the building is right around 30,000. So they're not reaching big. They're playing to what the crowds have been. But I think with the structure that I've read, and what they've got set up so far, I think that's a good start for them. And it'll be a good place. And I'm glad they're sticking around St. Pete.
"And I think the big reason why the stadium is going to be a success here in St. Pete is because the attendance at the building is right around 30,000. So they're not reaching big."Mike Cairns, Spectrum Bay News 9 reporter
Kaufman: I’m stunned that they're not going to go to Hillsborough County. The demographics don't lie. The numbers don't lie. The trends don't lie. I am very disappointed that they could not find a suitable site in Hillsborough. Whether it's Ybor City, towards the fairgrounds – which I think in geographical terms might have made the most sense – they’re putting the stadium basically in the same spot as Tropicana Field. You know, people like to say, well, we're not going because we don't want to make that drive over the bridge. Now, whether that's true or not, that's the common perception. And in that regard, nothing's going to change with this new stadium. So in that respect, I'm a little surprised.
"I’m stunned that they're not going to go to Hillsborough County. The demographics don't lie. The numbers don't lie. The trends don't lie. I am very disappointed that they could not find a suitable site in Hillsborough. Whether it's Ybor City, towards the fairgrounds – which I think in geographical terms might have made the most sense – they’re putting the stadium basically in the same spot as Tropicana Field."Ira Kaufman
Cairns: I'm just glad that they're staying here in our Bay area, and not moving to Montreal or Nashville, or wherever all the reports have been. And you're also seeing a great mix. It's not just an older crowd skewing the numbers of the attendance. It's a younger skew that's coming, you're getting those young professionals that have the money that live in downtown St. Pete. Because remember, they're building fast, and you're getting a lot of people in downtown St. Pete.
Let me ask about the money. It looks like the team has agreed to pay half of the cost of a new stadium, which is expected to cost more than $1 billion. And this is from a team that has historically pleaded poverty and has one of the lowest payrolls in baseball. Why do you think they did this about-face? And more importantly, where are they going to get that money?
Kaufman: It sounds excellent in theory. My big problem with (Rays principal owner Stu) Sternberg over the years has been, he hasn't really been very definitive about how much money he's willing to put up. And I think that was a big stumbling block. And then I think it triggered those rumors about the Rays going up Montreal (for half a season), which baseball shot down, that was a silly idea. Anyway, that was never going to happen. Hey, if Sternberg is willing to step up, God bless him. And he'll be a hero in this town if that happens, but right now, it's only on paper.
Cairns: Unfortunately, I have to agree with Ira there. I'll believe it when I see it. You're talking about coughing up over $600 million. And from what I've read in the report from Marc Topkin. In the (Tampa Bay) Times, he said that Sternberg does have investors that are going to add to that $600 million that they're going to and then Pinellas County is going to chip in. So we'll see. As a Pinellas County resident, we'll see what kind of effect that has on me in my taxes.
"...there's a lot of details we don't know yet. It's a lot of money and some taxpayer involvement. So the devil’s in the details, as they say, and we need a lot of details, but if this is going in a direction that will keep the Rays in the Tampa Bay area, I think that's a very positive thing."Joey Johnston
Joey, does it surprise you in any way that the city has reached a deal with the Rays?
Johnston: It doesn't, although it certainly is different than the narrative that I've been believing for 15 or 20 years that the only way to save the Rays was for it to be in Tampa. I did think that made a lot of sense, to be where the population base is. However, I would say overall, I'm in favor of anything that keeps the team in the Tampa Bay area. That's the bottom line. And as Mike and I think Ira alluded to earlier, there's a lot of details we don't know yet. It's a lot of money and some taxpayer involvement. So the devil’s in the details, as they say, and we need a lot of details, but if this is going in a direction that will keep the Rays in the Tampa Bay area, I think that's a very positive thing. And if this starts in 2028, there's certainly time - if they're acting now to get this done.
