Last week’s program was provided by Rotarian Josh Jimenez. Josh’s guest speaker was Daniel Schonborn, Ticket Sales Representative for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Following nearly three decades of unsuccessfully trying to gain an expansion franchise or enticing existing teams to relocate to the Tampa Bay Area, an ownership group led by Vince Naimoli was approved on March 9, 1995. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays began play in the 1998 Major League Baseball season. Their first decade of play, however, was marked by futility; they finished in last place in the AL East in all but the 2004 season, when they finished second to last.
Following the 2007 season, Stuart Sternberg, who had purchased controlling interest in the team from Vince Naimoli two years earlier, changed the team's name from "Devil Rays" to "Rays", now meant to primarily refer to a burst of sunshine rather than a manta ray, though a manta ray logo remains on the uniform sleeves. The 2008 season saw the Tampa Bay Rays post their first winning season, their first AL East championship, and their first pennant (defeating the rival Boston Red Sox in the ALCS), though they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in that year's World Series. Since then, the Rays have played in the postseason in 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2019. Since 2016, when the Rays finished the season 68 -94 (dead last) to 2018 when they finished 90-72 (barely missing the playoffs), to 2019 when they finished 96-66, won the Wild Card playoff and then took the Houston Astros’ to game 5 of the Divisional Series.
Great things are happing for the Rays! In 2018 Blake Snell won the Cy Young award and in 2019 Erik Neander was named MLB Executive of the year. Kevin Keirmaier eared his third Gold Glove award and Brandon Lowe is a finalist for Rookie of the Year. Kevin Cash is a finalist for Manager of the Year and Charlie Morton is a finalist for the 2019 Cy Young award.
Join the Rays in 2020!
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