Tampa Bay Rays

St. Petersburg, Florida: The Tampa Bay Rays are a major league baseball team in St. Petersburg. They play in the East Division of the America League.

The team entered the league as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays as part of the 1998 league expansion. The club plays its home games at Tropicana Field, one of the last few remaining dome stadiums in the league.

The Devil Rays played their first game on March 31, 1998 at Tropicana Field against the Detroit Tigers. Then they reached another major milestone in 1999 when Wade Boggs collected his 3,000th career hit on August 7th.

The Devil Rays struggles through the early years, finishing in last place of the division every year of existence until 2004. In 2004 the club finished 70-91 and in fourth place of the division, a first for both (first time winning over 70 games and first time not finishing in last place). But the club returned to its usual basement dwelling the following season and remained there for the next few years.

Following the 2005 season, Stuart Sternberg took over Naimoli’s spot as managing general partners and began to rebuild the organization. From the front office to the playing field, Sternberg looked to change the face of the Devil Rays. Sternberg replaced the front office management and brought in Joe Maddon as head coach of the club. They also made $10 million dollars of improvements to Tropicana Field, adding club seating, Rays touch tank and the Ted Williams Hall of Fame.

The changes in the organization increases the attendance at the stadium, with the 2006 home opener having a higher attendance than the inaugural game of 1998. But the team continued to struggle on the field, finishing the season with the worst record in baseball at 61-101. One unusual occurrence of the season occurred against Seattle on September 2nd when the Devils Rays turned a 2-6-2 triple play. This was the first time in baseball history for that to occur,

The Devil Rays continued to build the franchise, building the term around young players. In 2007, Tampa Bay fielded the youngest lineup in baseball since 1983 Twins. The offense and was placed near the top of many statistical categories. But the bullpen could not get the job done and the Devil Rays finished last again for the ninth time in ten seasons.

Following the 2007 season, front office management decided it was time to transform the club again. This time they changed the name and uniforms of the team. They dropped the devil from the name and became the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays then changed their uniforms in hopes that they can shed some of the past results.

Coming into the 2008, the future looked bright for the Rays. They began the season winning a franchise record 18 games in spring training. The Rays followed it up with an opening day win at Baltimore, first opening day win in seven seasons. By Memorial Day weekend, the Rays were in first place in the division and held the best record in baseball. By August 29th, the Rays secured their first winning season and on September 20th they clinched playoff berth by winning the division. They defeated the Chicago White Sox in the divisional series and the Boston Red Sox in the league championship to reach the World Series in their first playoff appearance. The Rays eventually fell to the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games to 1.

The Rays did not make the playoffs in 2009, but did finish with the third best record in the division. With the core of the roster being built around youth and a strong farm system, the Tampa Bay Rays should be contenders for years to come.

The Rays have played their home games at Tropicana Field since the team entered the league. They have also played two series at Disney’s Wide World of Sport Complex in the 2007 and 2008 seasons. There are plans to build a new retractable roof stadium along the Bayfront in St. Petersburg, but nothing has been started yet. The Rays hold spring training at Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte, Florida.

The Rays currently have nine teams in their farm system:

• Durham Bulls (AAA, International League)
• Montgomery Biscuits (AA, Southern League)
• Charlotte Stone Crabs (A+, Florida State League)
• Bowling Green Hot Rods (A, Midwest League)
• Hudson Valley Renegades (A-, New York-Penn League)
• Princeton Rays (R, Appalachian League)
• Gulf Coast Rays (R, Gulf Coast League)
• DSL Rays (R, Dominican Summer League)
• VSL Rays (R, Venezuelan Summer League)

The Rays have one player in the Hall of Fame, Wade Boggs. They also have retired two jersey numbers, Wade Boggs (12) and Jackie Robinson (42).

For photos from the Rays, visit my Tampa Bay Rays picture page. Here you can find game photo, player photos and spring training pictures.

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