But . . .
The Rays are an exciting young team. They have a lot of really good players. In a few years, they're going to be an exciting, slightly older team. Which means those good players are going to be able to command a lot more money than they're making now. And the revenue to pay them has to come from somewhere.
That's what made the sub-20,000 crowds for this series a little troubling for the people who run the franchise.
Team president Matt Silverman told the St. Petersburg Times that those attendance numbers "give us pause, and make us question how quickly we can get this ramped up. It makes us question whether we have the firepower to keep this team compelling and competitive . . .
"We're not shooting for the moon. We don't expect to be a top-five team in attendance. But when we're near the bottom of the major leagues in attendance on a night with a special matchup, it shows how far away we are from the league average. It just doesn't feel good."
Because of the Phillies' long ties to the Tampa Bay area, the Rays had projected sellouts for the series. "It's a huge miss," Silverman said.
It's worth noting that the franchise's history before last season was pretty much unrelieved futility. And that while air conditioning is a nice perk in an area where summer heat can be oppressive, Tropicana Field is hardly a great venue to watch a ballgame.
At the same time, the people who run this team can't change the past, control the weather or build a new stadium on their own. What they can do is put a compelling product on the field.
They've done that. At the moment, it doesn't seem to be enough.
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