Trop upgrades
The St. Petersburg Times has an article in todays paper pertaining to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays spending some 10 million dollars on Tropicana Field in renovations… Routine maintenance to the building has been lacking over the years, which has been routinely griped about by fans (effprts to find a St. Pete Times article of the past with fan complaints were futile) .
…Well, the ones who bother to attend games at least. The Devil Rays have drawn 3,457,895 fans total between 2003 and 2005 — That’s less than the total number of fans who attended games at Yankee Stadium or Dodger Stadium in 2005 alone (and perilously close to the total attendance at Busch Stadium in St. Louis as well). Of course, some will argue that the Rays aren’t anywhere near the Yankees, Dodgers or Cardinals in their history and heritage (as well as their competativeness at current) but that’s not the point of this article… The point is the Rays are routinely in the bottom of attendance rankings and Stuart Sternberg and his crew are trying to mend that problem through upgrades at the park.
Of course, the team has already made many-an-upgrade in an effort to lure back fans… But stadium renovations are another attempt…
December 16th, 2005 at 10:25 pm
The trop is junk and the only way to fix it is to level it. We are required to have new stadium in the future, or the team will be moved according to some MLB agreements with Rays I have read. The trop was not bulit for baseball. I would not be aganist moving the stadium to some were in hillsbourgh that would allow more possible fans. Altough in the end you can play in a crap can and sell it out if the team is winning. But, new stadiums are part and parcel of having a MLB team and this area and ownership better get ready!
December 16th, 2005 at 10:58 pm
Adam, I disagree with you on — oh, just about everything here.
Hwo many times have you been inside Tropicana Field? It’s not bad but the ambiance sucks in part because of the team who plays there. Every time I have been, I’ve enjoyed the game but one aspect or another - little things - from the stadium got on my nerves…. Including small crowds.
The Trop WAS built for Baseball — saying otherwise basically ignores Tampa Bay’s sports history — but you could point out that the DESIGN or the trop was a poor decision and the timing was bad… It was on the cusp of the retro era of stadiums in baseball.
Hillsborough County has growth issues and government issues — they are not going to be willing to fund a stadium anytime soon…. And having a very suburban ballpark in New Tapa (where there is land) would be just as bad, if not worse, than having the team in St. Petersburg as is. There is no land in downtown, and building a stadium by Raymond James Stadium is out of the quesiton with thanks to Malcom Glazer and his sweetheart deal for his football stadium.
The Trop can be improved and Sternburg and company are doing what they can to improve those little things that irked me and a LOT of other people when attending Rays games.
December 17th, 2005 at 11:45 am
I have been inside that dump over a 100 times. I lived in St. Pete for many years. I think you are wrong about the trop being bulit for baseball. It was bulit as a general type stadium, to host many different events. As it’s history reflects. It was bulit before Tampa was even a serious contender for baseball team. The trop we be leveled or we will lose this team at some point. I will be inside it again now, as my boycott of Vince is over. No one is bigger baseball fan than myself. I have been to nearly half the stadiums in use for MLB so I might have a few thoughts local only fans r missing. This is a good source of debate and I welcome it as this will be larger issus in years to come.
December 17th, 2005 at 12:07 pm
Adam, it’s not even up for discussion WHY the dome was built. They only funded the construction of The Florida Suncoast Dome (now Tropicana Field) to help lure Major League Baseball.
The Stadim is DESIGNED to be multi-use but it was built primarily for baseball. It’s not up for discussion or debate — all you have to do is check on the history of the venue - from proposals to efforts to land MLB starting in the 1980’s, or even read “Stadium for Rent” by Bob Andelman which is a good overview of the Dome’s history.
You can disagree on opinions on the long term viability of the structure, the design of the structure (which was out of date when it opened — a 1970’s design, constructed in the 80’s and opened in the 90’s) and the like but the reason the stadium was built? Come on… There’s WAY too much evidence that proves WHY the stadium was built… Saying otherwise looks foolish or even down right ignorant.