Busy weekend at Trop: All Pro Dad event, Smash Mouth after A's game

Tropicana Field is going to be pretty busy this weekend.

• First up the Tampa Bay Rays are hosting an All Pro Dads event beginning at 9:00. this morning on the field. It’s part of the fatherhood program, All Pro Dad, started by former coach and now NBC football analyst Tony Dungy 12 years ago. The 2 1/2-hour event will include games for kids, bonding activities for dads and their children and advice for dads from Rays players, Gabe Gross and  Lance Cormier. It’s $15 for one dad and up to four kids. For information, go to the All Pro Dad Web site or call (813) 222-8300.

• Later today, get your game on when the light-and-sunny retro rockers Smash Mouth will be giving a free show after the Rays play the Oakland A's. Game time is 6:08 p.m. The concert is free with game admission. Tickets are $13 and at Ticketmaster or call toll-free 1-888-326-729. They'll do their hits Walking on the Sun, All Star and I'm A Believer.

• And then on Sunday during Family Fun Day, the first 10,000 kids ages 14 and under who attend the 1:38 p.m. game will get a Carl Crawford bobblehead. It's fitting that just a few days before the All-Star Game, all-star Crawford gets the bobblehead treatment. Tropicana Field is at 1 Stadium Drive, St. Petersburg.

Rays game resumes after 20-minute delay for power outage

Just about ready to resume play at the Trop. And, yes, Roy Halladay is still in the game for the Jays. The delay officially was 20 minutes, 2:29 to 2:49. According to the Rays, Florida Progress said the power outage was caused by a lightning strike at a substation in the area, and the power outage was not limited to Tropicana Field.

Game delayed, bank of lights out

UPDATE, 2:34: The Rays say the lights should be back on by about 2:45.

The fierce thunderstorm outside the stadium just resulted in a delay inside, as the top bank of lights went out. The Rays are leading 3-2, and the Blue Jays had just started to take the field for the bottom of the seventh inning when about half the lights in Tropicana Field's uppermost ring went out.

Tropicana Field fan says he was assaulted by Phillies pitcher J.C. Romero, Phillies looking into "alleged incident"

UPDATE, 5:05: Romero initially told Philadelphia reporters he didn't want to comment. Asked by a Daily News reporter if he wanted to hear the accusation, Romero replied:   "What'd he say. That he was drunk and got into a fight?. . .I'm not going to comment about it.  I'm trying to be professional and I don't really want to get into that. Don't make a story out of nothing."   "I don't know what's going on. I'm just finding out through you guys."

UPDATE, 2:14: A New Port Richey man says he was assaulted by a Philadelphia Phillies player following Thursday's game against the Rays.

Robert Eaton, a 25-year-old father of two, said Phillies pitcher J.C. Romero grabbed him by the neck and pushed him after he made a comment about steroids.

For more on the story, click here.

NEWS:  After the Times reported Saturday of an incident between an unnamed Phillies player and a fan at Tropicana Field after Thursday's game at the Trop, the Phillies today issued this statement:

"We're disappointed to learn about the alleged incident with a Rays fan and one of our players following Thursday night's game at Tropicana Field. We are in the process of gathering all of the details surrounding the situation. Until such information is provided, it would be inappropriate for us to comment at this time."

The Times reported Saturday:

An incident took place between a fan and a Phillies player after Thursday's game, the Rays confirmed. ''At this point it is a police matter and for that reason we won't have any further comment," the team said in a statement, but did not identify the player. St. Petersburg Police officials could not be reached late Friday night, but a dispatcher confirmed that a report for a battery call was taken at the stadium at about 11 p.m. Thursday. The Phillies could not be reached for comment.

Tampa Bay Rays find small crowds "bewildering"

Rays officials were clearly disappointed in the relatively small crowd of 19,608 for Tuesday's opening game and similar projections for the other two games of the World Series rematch with the Phillies.

"As we were planning for the season, we circled this series as one of the most compelling of the year,'' team president Matt Silverman said Tuesday night. "It's a rare privilege to host a rematch of the World Series, especially against a team with local connections. Based on all the information we had, we projected full houses.  It's a huge miss."

Silverman said the Rays are perplexed why attendance hasn't been better - the Rays went into play Tuesday averaging 22,796, which was 10th in the American League and 23rd in the majors. Going into the season, they said their goal was to match the MLB average, which was 29,562 entering play Tuesday.

"Quite frankly, we don't know what to attribute it to, but it's not just the economy,'' he said.  "It's bewildering. There seems to be great affection for the team and excitement for the '09 campaign, but it's not showing up at the gate at all."

Asked if the Rays would have drawn better if the games were played in Clearwater, where the Phillies have spring training, or in Tampa, where some people think a new stadium should be built, Silverman responded: "I don't know how it might have drawn at other locales within Tampa Bay, but a matchup of World Series teams would clearly have drawn a good deal better in every other baseball market."

In six previous Series rematches, the lowest single-game attendance was 37,700 for an Astros-at-White Sox game in 2006. The average for a rematch series (including two in 2001 between the Mets and Yankees) was 46,868.

Slide show: Tampa Bay Rays 5, Washington Nationals 4

Click here for a slide show of the Tampa Bay Rays win over the Washington Nationals on Sunday.

Bill Murray in the house at Trop

Actor/comedian Bill Murray, a longtime baseball fan and part-owner of several minor-league teams, was in the Tropicana Field stands for Wednesday's game.
 
Murray was wearing a Charleston RiverDogs cap – the former Rays and current Yankees affiliate that he is a part-owner of.

Tuesday soldout

Tuesday's game is virtually sold out, team president Matt Silverman just said on the field.
 
All fans receive replica AL championship rings. Only a few hundred tickets remain and they will be sold shortly.

The selllout will be the Rays 13th consecutive including the postseason.

For (home) openers - schedule of events

For (home) openers

The Rays released a revised schedule, and created more time for the banner ceremony, with first pitch pushed back to 7:15,

Monday’s schedule:

2:00  Parking lots open
4:00 Gates open – Rays players greet fans at rotunda entrance, and Gate 4
4:40  Rays batting practice
5:25  Yankees batting practice
6:37  Introduction of Yankees lineup
6:43  Introduction of Rays lineup
6:50  Presentation of colors by U.S. Central Command Joint Service color guard, unfurling of 300 x 150 foot flag in shape of continental U.S.
6:51 National anthem by BK Jackson, 17-year-old saxophonist from Tampa’s Blake High School.
6:53  Ceremonial first pitch by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.
7:00  Raising of AL East and AL Championship banners above leftfield by team officials, staff and players, assisted by MacDill Air Force Base Joint Communications Support Element.
7:15 First pitch by Scott Kazmir

Details: The Rays are 5-6 in home openers. … This is the latest they have played a home opener. … It is the second time they have opened at home against the Yankees, also 2004 after starting season in Japan. … Game soldout Feb. 26; tickets available for all other games.

Coming up:
Tuesday: vs. Yankees. AL championship ring ceremony pre-game, replica rings for all fans.
Wednesday: vs. Yankees. Presentation of Carlos Pena’s Gold Glove award; AL championship cowbells for all fans.
Thursday: vs. White Sox.
Friday: vs. White Sox.
Saturday: vs. White Sox. Presentation of Evan Longoria’s AL Rookie of the Year award; AL championship trophy replicas for all fans
Sunday: vs. White Sox. Presentation of Joe Maddon’s AL Manager of the Year award; AL championship pennants to first 10,000 kids

Bus service for Friday games

The Rays and ESCOT Bus Lines are partnering to offer bus service to Friday home games from select sites in Pinellas, Hillsborough and Manatee counties. Team president Matt Silverman cited the desire to expand their "regional reach" and the later 7:38 start times for the decision. The team didn't say how much the bus service would cost, referring price and purchasing questions to ESCOT, either through ESCOTBusLines.com, or by calling 888-571-7778. Game tickets would be purchased separately.

Here are the details from the team press release:

Schedule
Date Opponent Game Time
Friday, April 17 Chicago White Sox 7:38 p.m.
Friday, May 1 Boston Red Sox 7:38 p.m.
Friday, May 15 Cleveland Indians 7:38 p.m.
Friday, May 29 Minnesota Twins 7:38 p.m.
Friday, June 12 Washington Nationals 7:38 p.m.
Friday, June 26 Florida Marlins 7:38 p.m.
Friday, July 10 Oakland Athletics 7:38 p.m.

Pinellas County:
5:15 p.m. departure from Tarpon Springs Shopping Mall
5:45 p.m. departure from Country Side Mall
6:30 p.m. departure from Courtside Grille
7:00 p.m. arrival at Tropicana Field

Hillsborough County:
5:30 p.m. departure from Beef O’Brady’s, 9331 E. Adamo Dr., Tampa
6:00 p.m. departure from Channelside District
6:30 p.m. departure from West Shore Mall
7:00 p.m. arrival at Tropicana Field
 
 
Manatee County:
5:15 p.m. departure from Beef O’Brady’s, 5942 34th St. W., Sarasota
6:00 p.m. departure from Beef O’Brady’s, 1795 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch
6:35 p.m. departure from Beef O’Brady’s, 8913 US Highway 301 N., Parrish
7:00 p.m. arrival at Tropicana Field