Rebuilding the Devil Rays
A Times EditorialPublished September 3, 2005
For years, Tampa Bay tried everything it could to land a major league baseball team only to strike out again and again. Vince Naimoli finally won an expansion franchise in 1995, and he deserves a lifetime achievement award for fulfilling this area's dream. Now it is time for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays to begin a new era without Naimoli calling the shots.
It would be a step in the right direction for the managing general partner to hand control of the team to investor Stuart Sternberg after this season. Spending another season waiting for the inevitable is not in the best interests of the franchise or the community. A rebuilding effort is needed on the field and off, and that can't happen without new leadership and more money.
The Rays are last in team payroll, attendance and the American League East. Those factors are interrelated: Despite a promising core of young players, until the owners spend more money the team will not be consistently competitive. And until the team wins more often, fans won't flock to Tropicana Field. As the Tampa Bay Buccaneers demonstrated, this area will support a professional sports franchise when the owner invests in better players and the team becomes competitive.
The very traits that helped Naimoli secure a franchise contributed to his failure to build a successful team on the field or in the stands. Many of the controversies over the years, from firing a popular member of the grounds crew to confrontations with fans, were trivial. But collectively they hurt the franchise and alienated the community. Naimoli also kept a tight grip on his wallet, refusing to increase the payroll even as the team turned a profit. Even the team's best move, bringing Lou Piniella home to manage, turned bittersweet as promises to make the team more competitive went unfulfilled.
Sternberg has yet to introduce himself to the community, and his intentions aren't entirely clear. The tidbits about reorganizing the team, reaching out to fans and investing in the team sound encouraging. But while it's understandable the new investor has not publicly sketched out his plans while Naimoli is still in charge, Tampa Bay will want to hear directly from Sternberg soon. This area has seen its share of oddball owners of its professional teams, and it needs some reassurance about the direction of the Devil Rays.
This franchise needs leadership as scrappy and likable and eager to win as the young Rays who have anchored the team's recent turnaround. Naimoli deserves a pat on the back for bringing major league baseball to Tampa Bay. Now Tampa Bay deserves an ownership team that will reconnect with the community and spend the money to make the Devil Rays competitive.