By MARC TOPKIN, Times Staff Writer
Published March 6, 2005
Virtually nothing can be done in the organization without Vince Naimoli's approval. "The buck stops here."
[Times photo: Michael Rondou]
Photo gallery What went wrong: What the fans say 400 telephone interviews conducted from Feb. 2 – 12, 2005, from randomly chosen households in Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco and Pinellas counties of people who describe themselves as “baseball fans.” What do you think? Post your thoughts in our guestbookIs anyone watching? The Devil Rays are hoping to rebuild their attendance. Here is how they have drawn for games at Tropicana Field. Seven-year itch Through their first seven seasons, the Rays stack up as one of the least successful expansion teams in baseball history. Here are the seven year records. Keeping pace A big reason the Devil Rays can’t compete with the Yankees on the field is that they aren’t even in the same ballpark in terms of payroll. Here is a look at how the disparity has grown over the years.
FAMILY: Wife, Lenda; daughters, Christine, Tory Ann, Alyson, Lindsey
LIVES: Avila community of Tampa in a 14,958-square foot house with a taxable value of $3,411,019.
CARS IN HIS NAME: 2000 Mercedes CLK, 2001 Mercedes two-door, 2000 Lincoln Navigator.
PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Grew up in Paterson, N.J. ... Father was a second-generation Italian immigrant who became a self-taught engineer. ... Graduated from Notre Dame in 1959 with a degree in mechanical engineering after receiving a Navy ROTC scholarship. ... Has master's degrees from New Jersey Institute of Technology (mechanical engineering) and Fairleigh-Dickinson (business administration) and completed Harvard Business School advanced management program. ... Received Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1999. ... Inducted into the National Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2004. ... Big Notre Dame football fan and was honorary coach in 1990 spring game. ... Served on MLB's Blue Ribbon Task Force on Baseball Economics.
BUSINESS ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Made his mark as a corporate turnaround specialist known for austerity and cost-cutting. ... Was chairman of Anchor Glass Container Corp., receiving a reported $20-million golden parachute (including $18-million in stock) after a hostile takeover, with $14-million more due by leasing the facilities back to the company. ... Formed Anchor Industries International. ... Former CEO of Doehler-Jarvis, an aluminum parts manufacturer; Harvard Industries, an automotive supplier; and Ladish Co., an industrial parts manufacturer. ... Former executive with Electrolux and Regina Corps., Alleghany Beverage, Lancaster Capital Corp. and Harding Service Corp. ... Has served on several corporate boards as well as University of Tampa board of trustees. ... Ties to Tampa date to late 1970s when he was an executive with the Jim Walter Corp.
