Think that’s bad?
Well, Rays pitcher David Price
agrees. Price wrote on his Twitter page last night: “Had a chance to clinch a post season spot tonight with about 10,000 fans in the stands....embarrassing”
Can’t say I blame him. Tampa Bay has been a solid team for three years now and even went to the World Series two years ago. Yet, it doesn’t seem the local fans have embraced the Rays even though they never have to worry about a game being rained out.
Price, however, felt the power of Twitter last night. About an hour after he wrote that tweet, he apologized for offending anyone.
But who is he offending? The people sitting at home reading his Twitter page? You shouldn’t be offended if you were supporting the team.
Preach on Price. Be proud of your team that you want fans to come and support you.
Try pitching in Oakland. I heard from the mound you can actually hear a conversation in the parking lot.
ReplyDeleteDURING GAME SEVEN OF THE PLAYOFFS....
Hilarious true story about the Coliseum.
ReplyDeleteI used to work the night shift, and I that particular day I worked overtime I got off at noonish. I took the BART home, and I would pass the Coliseum every day. It stops right in front so you get a clear view of the parking lot & stadium. The BART stopped at the Coliseum that day at around 12:20. I glanced over at the parking lot and there were probably 50 cars at the most it was DEAD. I asked a guy across from me in As gear If they played today, and he replied yes. SO I figured I would go home sleep, shower up and catch that nights game. I stepped off the Bart that night to an empty station??
Come to find out the A's had a 1:05 game that day, and only 4,500 showed a majority of which were walk ins.
Next day in the paper Tim Hudson ( who threw a one hitter) Quoted " It was so quite I can hear the other teams dugout talking about how good my stuff was so I just rode it out.
Only in Oakland
Supporting the team and SUPPORTING the team are 2 seperate things... I LOVE the Rays and know a TON of Rays fans around here. Thing is we are all broke... The economy sucks DP. We love ya, but we're freaking broke! You want fans in the seats, lower the PRICES!!! I went to a game on Sunday with my wife and had a blast, but I am eating ramen noodles all week...
ReplyDeleteMost Rays fans in the Bay Area who are lucky enough to have jobs are in the service industry and are working during the games. That and half the population is in bed asleep when games start at 7 pm. I know it looks bad on TV, it hurts to not be there, but... GO RAYS!!!
the economy sucks everywhere, especially here in Detroit, where our team is 12 games back and drew 32,000 FOR THE LAST GAME! he shouldn't have to apologize. i hope all those rays leave in free-agency, we'd love crawford in the D!
ReplyDelete12,446? That's it?
ReplyDeleteThere were about as many Phillies fans last night in D.C.
Cincinnati had some pretty pathetic numbers a couple weeks ago, but like Troll said, the economy sucks. With the team headed to the postseason (assuming they win 1 more or the Cards lose 1 before season's end), some people are actually trying to save money for playoff tickets, or have already spent money on playoff tickets. NLCS went on sale this morning.
ReplyDeleteThe players may not like the reasoning, but that's the way it is. Detroit drew 32k? Good for them. I have other things to spend my money on. Heck, I just canceled my cable because it was too expensive, so not only will I not be seeing them at the park, I can't even watch them on TV anymore! I just have to check the internet for the scores and stats.
Sometimes life just sucks. Price has every right to complain; I would be upset about it too if I was a ballplayer. But at the same time should be grateful for the paycheck he receives regardless of how many people are there to see him perform.
Maybe in light of that, Price and other Rays players who want to see people in seats should buy blocks of tickets and then donate them to different charities.
ReplyDeleteThey can give them to the Boys and Girls Club of America for the children and their families to come out and enjoy the game for one night. Or call the local Food Bank and offer them a group of tickets for people who need to come there to get their food.
As sad as the attendance is there is no way a million+ dollar a yr athlete should be telling some guy taking home $9 an hour how to spend his money.
ReplyDeletePrice is right, the attendance was embarrassing. But it's still not as bad as the media makes it out to be. Monday night is always the worst night for attendance, and the game was against the lowly Orioles. The Rays normally draw 30,000+ for weekend games, and sell out or come very close for games against the Yankee$ and Red $ox. The Rays average attendance has increased significantly in the last 2 years, and TV ratings have skyrocketed.
ReplyDeleteAll that said, yeah, it's still terrible that so few people came out to that game. I don't live in Florida, so I am not to blame. They need a new stadium ASAP, and it needs to be in Tampa, not St. Pete. And if they can't get that done, they need to move. I think they should consider moving to NJ or CT, as there seems to be much more money to spend on baseball in the Northeast.
Anyway, enough about the attendance. No one will be talking about that once the playoffs start. I can't wait for the epic ALCS showdown between the Rays and the Yankee$!
I went to a Rays game a couple years ago, and I had a great experience (I live in CA). I may be a weirdo, but I even like the Trop's unique, but not contrived, qualities. Flag poles in play with little hills in dead center at the wall is just doofy gimmickry.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing I didn't like was the playground sandbox area's worth of parking. Piles of boring land around the stadium, so why was parking so difficult? My game was in August of '08, so the Rays were drawing at the time (over 30k for that game). Then again, LL Cool J also gave a free concert afterward.
An odd-shaped covered stadium with catwalks in play--that's the kind of thing that adds character to the game. Precisely because players and numbers of fans have it around to complain about in the first place.
All I can say is that I am so glad that the Giants apparently dodged a bullet. In the mid-90s, there was serious talk of moving the Giants to Tampa / St. Pete. Instead, we got Pac Bell / SBC / AT&T park and the team to stick around indefinitely. It would have been sad to the extreme to see a 100+ year old club like the Giants draw 4500 people per game in the Sunshine State.
I live about 4 miles up the road from Tropicana Field, but I'm not a Rays fan. Like many people who live in Florida, I'm not actually from here.
ReplyDeleteWhen I moved south in 1996, I brought my allegiances with me. Several years in Jacksonville (including a 14-2 season in '99) couldn't make me a Jaguars fan and being so close to Tropicana now that I've moved here likely won't make me a Rays fan. And I guess I'm not the only one who can't shake years of habit.
So if that makes me an A-hole in the eyes of David Price, so be it. I've been called much worse.