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Until now, the question of whether Tampa Bay would support a competitive major league baseball team had been entirely hypothetical. Since the Devil Rays first took the field in 1998, they had followed the same dismal pattern every year, falling into the cellar while spring was still young and taking permanent residence there through the long, languid summer and early fall. While other cities were captivated by pennant races, Tampa Bay fans were denied even the diversion of a serious run at next-to-last place.
This season started out like more of the same, as the local nine lurched to a 10-28 record and the 17-year cicadas began scouting Tropicana Field as a permanent home.
But now the Devil Rays - bless 'em - are finally putting us to the test. Lou Piniella's men have compiled the best record in baseball over the past month, completing a turnaround of historic proportions. And they are doing it with style. Young, home-grown talents such as Carl Crawford and Rocco Baldelli are on the cusp of fame and fortune, and a sprinkling of veterans such as Tampa's own Tino Martinez are adding ballast.
Winning breeds amnesia. Vince Naimoli's nasty tirades and Chuck Lamar's ghastly trades are all but forgotten, along with six years of futility on the field. Stuart Sternberg, the New York investor who recently purchased 48 percent of the team, already has enlivened operations at the Trop. The Devil Rays aren't quite ready to join their fellow former laughingstocks, the Bucs and Lightning, as world champions, but they are breathing the heady air of third place and have the lordly Red Sox looking over their shoulders.
For years, our team, our stadium and our fans have been subjected to national ridicule. The team has silenced its critics, and there's nothing wrong with the Trop that an extra 15,000 fans a night wouldn't cure.
So now we'll see if the Tampa Bay community is ready to hold up its end of the bargain.
Attendance at the Trop has been disappointing since 1998, but would-be fans have had the excuse that the Rays were losers. The Florida Marlins have won two World Series, including last year's, but they still play before as many empty seats in their home park as the Devil Rays do. The Marlins are coming to town for a series that begins Friday night. That would be a good time for baseball fans in this part of the state to start showing that they know how to support a winner.