Sternberg owns the Rays, and manages an adult softball team

You can't make this stuff up. Read this about Rays owner Stuart Sternberg.

Wrapping up the season

Ballpark Frankness caught up with Rays team president Matt Silverman in the Tampa Bay Rays clubhouse Thursday afternoon. He talked about a new stadium and some plans for the Trop next year. Here's some of what he had to say.

On a new stadium
"With the love this team has fostered, the discussion of a new ballpark takes on new meaning. It makes the new ballpark less of a sell. Through this postseason run, the community has been been able to recognize the economic impact of baseball firsthand."

On the team's financial take from the postseason
"The dollars generated during the postseason run are minor compared to what this can mean for the team going forward. The key for sustainability is adding to the season ticket base and creating a recurring revenue stream."

On the contiunity heading into the 2009 season
"Fans won't have to get to know 15 new faces next year like it was when we were the Devil Rays."

A couple of other notes: Silverman said fans should expect ticket prices to increase next year (it's been two offseasons without an increase), but that those increases would not be dramatic. No major physical changes are planned for the Trop next year. Silverman also said the team is largely going to stay out of the stadium discussions this offseason, leaving the work to Mayor Rick Baker's ABC Baseball coalition. And the Rays are considering adding a third, alternate jersey for next season.

World Series stadium talk

ST. PETERSBURG — Standing on the turf of Tropicana Field, marveling at the historic turnaround of the Tampa Bay Rays, principal owner Stu Sternberg acknowledged one major regret.

"Part of me wishes that I'd be playing this game on the waterfront tonight,'' Sternberg said moments before Wednesday's Game 1. "How unbelievable would downtown be? And how unbelievable would the city of St. Petersburg be … with all the parking, and all the walking, and all the stores, and all the restaurants, and the views, and the weather?"

Read the rest here.

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Wall Street Journal on Rays' financial situation

The Tampa Bay Rays have slain the big-market bullies from New York, Chicago and Boston, but the team will soon face a much greater foe.

"The economy could kill us," says Stuart Sternberg, the team's principal owner and a former partner at Goldman Sachs.

For years, Mr. Sternberg's franchise was the doormat of baseball, a money-losing team that few thought would ever prove successful. But tonight, the Rays will begin the World Series at home in St. Petersburg, playing the Philadelphia Phillies.

Playing with Major League Baseball's second lowest payroll, the Rays owe much of their success to the long-term contracts given to their core of talented young players. The deals will allow the team to keep its top players for several more years, leading many to predict that the Rays could become a dominant force in the game.

But Mr. Sternberg has a problem: The Rays, he says, can barely afford their $44-million payroll with their current attendance, and that payroll is going up. Once the glamor of October baseball fades, the Rays will need to build a stable fan base in a region that has never truly embraced them -- and it must do so during an economic crisis that is worse in Florida than nearly anywhere else.

Read the rest here.

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What ABC's been up to

So I just got back from ABC's third committee meeting at the EpiCenter in Largo. The group is still getting organized and really hasn't gotten to the nuts and bolts of what it's been formed to do. Officials promise that is coming shortly.

What I can tell you is that no sites have been discussed for a potential stadium. Neither have funding plans or the design of the facility.

Anecdotally, it seems most members prefer a facility with air conditioning. But other than that, there just isn't much to report. Stay tuned.

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So is this playoffs thing good or bad for a new stadium?

It's a question I've been pondering lately. Does the team's success help or hurt the Rays' chances at getting a new ballpark any time soon?

On one hand, the city seems to be more excited about the Rays than ever before. And perhaps people are more willing now to help the team out.

But on the other hand, anyone who has been to one of the two playoff home games so far probably has noticed the great home-field advantage Tropicana Field presents -- and just how fun the place can be when it's filled up.

What do you think? Help or hurt?

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ABC meeting tonight

Just a reminder that the ABC baseball coalition is meeting tonight. Here are the details.

Date and time: 5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 1 
Location: EPI Center
13805 58th St. N
Room 1-455

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ESPN's take on the dome

Believe it or not, they don't insult the stadium once.