Shit of get off the pot! move this team already! Atleast it's a step.
Verified account @JeffPassan
BREAKING: The Tampa Bay Rays have received MLB's permission to explore becoming two-city team: the Tampa Bay area and Montreal, sources tell ESPN. The plan: Play early-season home games in the Tampa Bay area and finish the season in Montreal. News at ESPN:
Shit of get off the pot! move this team already! Atleast it's a step.
Gotta gauge city interest... But where the hell will they play? They can't go back to the Big-O.
Would love a team back in Mtl. FULL TIME.
Follow me on twitter: @doylelb4
The plan is to play in Florida at it's hottest then move to Canada as it starts to get colder?
This would end the Blue Jays' pre-season games in Montreal but I'm sure Montreal-ers would welcome the change. Considering all the smart folks working in the Rays front office, you have to figure they believe this could be a resounding success. My only question is what they do with playoff games?
I don't even know how this would even work properly. How do players get paid on their contract, with US and Canadian money, etc.
How does attendance actually make sense if the team is moonlighting / flirting with two cities?
Probably some type of posturing going on here in stadium talks with the Florida market.
Can't seriously have a team in two cities...
one has to think... attendance in TB is going to tank. Why follow a team if any meaningful games are played in another city?
I thought the Islanders two arena deal was the shits...
Poor Rays fans
Follow me on twitter: @doylelb4
My guess is they will get paid in funds according to where the ownership of the team exists. So if ownership is in Tampa... then they will get paid in US dollars.
My question is the players... are they going to have to own two homes? Or are they going to get extra compensation to rent in Montreal for 3 monthts of a year. And this will be hard on all the players with young families in school systems.
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Couple of things popped into my head:
- 162 games, 81 at home. Who gets the odd game at home
- What happens during playoffs
- What's the team name
- There's not even a direct flight between the two cities
But the TBR are a solid team, and can't get a crowd. It's fair to say they're cooked in terms of attendance. However, the money going into the team is marginal at best when it comes attendance, it's all from the TV deals so attendance isn't much. Pretty sure the TBR are worth more than like 8 NHL teams.
12 Team, H2H, Keep 6 (in Bold)
G, A, Pts, PPP, FW, SOG, Hits, Blocks
W, Saves, S%, GAA, Game Started
2C, 2LW, 2RW, 4D, 1Util, 2G, 5BN, 2IR, 1IR+, 1NA
C:
LW:
RW:
D:
Util:
G:
I didn't even think about how shitty that would be for the players on that team. Good grief, who would sign up for this?
Apparently every baseball insider is saying its not happening
12 Team, H2H, Keep 6 (in Bold)
G, A, Pts, PPP, FW, SOG, Hits, Blocks
W, Saves, S%, GAA, Game Started
2C, 2LW, 2RW, 4D, 1Util, 2G, 5BN, 2IR, 1IR+, 1NA
C:
LW:
RW:
D:
Util:
G:
The ruling by MLB today was just the acceptance to " explore" the idea.
I doubt very seriously it grows many legs, if any at all. Even if it did, then it would still have to go through MLBPA...
I'd bet its just a ploy / tactic to get stadium talks again going in TB.
But in the end, this team needs to move out of Florida.
Seems like a great idea in theory, find two cities that will support half a season of a team each and combine them. However the practicalities seem like a logistical nightmare. Further, not sure why Montreal is being explored as the partner city, they do not have anything close to a park that would work.
That being said don't forget that the Expos actually played games in Puerto Rico their final 2 years before relocation to Washington. The announcement that the team was not playing 81 home games in Montreal was a really bad sign and the beginning of the end for the team in Montreal. I get the issues with the Rays and Tampa and know their stadium and attendance are brutal, I can see the team relocating but I do not see Montreal as a top target by any stretch of the imagination.
12 team H-2-H 1 year league, daily roster changes, 3 goalie start minimum/week
2xC, 2xRW, 2xLW, 4xD, 3xUtil, 2xG, 5 Bench
G, A, P, PIM, PPP, SHP, GWG, SOG, Hits, W, SV%, GAA, SVs
C: C. Keller, C. Mittelstadt, B. Nelson, R. Strome,
LW: K. Connor, B. Tkachuk, J. Gaudreau, J. Marchessault, E. Rodrigues, A. Lafreniere
RW: K. Fiala, J. Bratt, T. Jeannot V. Arvidsson
D: R. Josi, J. Trouba, E. Gustafsson,
G: L. Thompson, F. Gustavsson, V. Vanecek
NO IR