Tis the season: maybe not the season to be merry but definitely the season to eat a hot dog, have a beer, and bask in the sun at your local ball park. Move over Santa, mistletoe, and reindeer poop: baseball season is here.
This sentiment is a particularly great statement for Florida folk: of all the places to be a baseball fan, Florida is one of the best; it was made for fun in the sun.
This year, Florida fans who aren’t rooting for the Marlins may find themselves filling the seats at Tropicana Field to cheer on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
As one of the youngest franchises in baseball, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have had their sea legs for several seasons: like many new teams, they are just finding their footing. However, it appeared that they had almost found it halfway through last season: at the 2006 All Star break the Devil Rays were only eleven games below .500. With a strong second half, they would have been able to make themselves into real contenders.
Upper management, however, had other plans. Rather than contending for a playoff berth, the Devil Rays traded many veteran players for younger players who could contribute more to the future of the team. The future, as they say, is starting this season.
When the Tampa Bay Devil Rays took the mound for the 2007 opening day, they had the youngest starting lineup since the Minnesota Twins in 1983. Youth, it turns out, didn’t win this one: the Devil Rays lost to the New York Yankees by a score of 9-5.
Yet, the season is just beginning and anything can happen. Fans hope that Tampa Bay will follow the footsteps of the other Florida team and start making their way towards a championship.
As for what the rest of the season will hold, the Devil Rays definitely have their work cut out for them. Not only do they compete in the AL East - a division that include the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox - but many of their players are young and unproven. No one knows for sure which way they will go.
Article comments
1 - Tan The Man
In being so bad for so long, they accrued many #1 draft picks, too bad they didn't pick many pitchers. They have great position players but man do they NEED more pitching.