We discuss The Rays splitting time building a new stadium
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00:00So yesterday, the owner of the race, Stu Sternberger, he had a press conference.
00:03It was on Facebook Live.
00:04I watched the whole thing.
00:05Actually, I couldn't stop watching it because I don't think it's maybe the first time in history an owner of a major league sports franchise comes out on Facebook and says, hey, we want to take the franchise that is in this city now and split time with a city that's in another country.
00:21It's like shared custody.
00:23It's exactly what it is.
00:25It's exactly what it was.
00:26But of a major league team.
00:29It's shared custody, but then an independent party gets rich, right?
00:33So this was basically kind of the way this kicked off.
00:37I believe strongly in the sister city concept, and together we can make it a reality.
00:42Okay, so it's Tampa Bay area, and then it's Montreal.
00:44It's the Rays.
00:45There was a lot of great questions like, what would the name of the team be?
00:48They had no answer.
00:49There was—
00:50Oh, they didn't like my suggestion from last week?
00:53What was yours again?
00:53I forget.
00:54The Rays.
00:54Oh, no, they didn't.
00:56I liked the Maple Rays.
00:57That was mine.
00:58And I haven't heard anyone talk about that.
01:00And I think that's a gem right there.
01:01Missed opportunity.
01:02It was free right there on the table for them.
01:04Stu's lost.
01:05What can I say?
01:06I mean, I just—I handed it to them.
01:07I know.
01:09And they said, what if the team makes the playoffs?
01:11Where would they play?
01:12Who would host?
01:13Us or Montreal?
01:14No answer for that.
01:15Yep.
01:15The only thing that they said is that the first half of the year would be the Tampa Bay half
01:21of the year.
01:22And then the second half of the year, starting in July, then that would be the Montreal half.
01:26And they were saying the weather.
01:27Now, some of the positives may be—
01:30The weather doesn't matter when we're in the trop, but yeah.
01:32No, but that's the whole thing.
01:34There's no trop.
01:35This is going to be a new stadium, and it has to be outdoor.
01:37Yeah, open air.
01:38So they want a new stadium and to split time in half.
01:43That's right.
01:43New stadium here and new stadium in Montreal.
01:46Man.
01:46Yeah.
01:47Let the text and the calls flow in.
01:48800-992-1099.
01:51I know a lot of people are angry about this.
01:53The owner that raised was following up on some questions from reporters like this.
01:57How much of it do you think about alienating the diehard fan base that is selfish to have
02:02the team—I mean, selfish to have the team all to their own?
02:05If this had been all to their own and the numbers were different here, dramatically different,
02:09that all for their own is not going to be an option going forward.
02:13All right.
02:13So what he says is, hey, Tampa Bay, you're not going to have your own team anymore.
02:16That's right.
02:16That you're going to have to split it because the numbers were down.
02:19Yeah.
02:19This is why we can't have nice things.
02:21People didn't show up, and now they want to split time.
02:23Yeah.
02:24So 800-992-1099.
02:28I will say, I thought—this is what it would come down to.
02:32Would you rather have a team for half the year or no team at all?
02:38I'd rather have no team at all at this point.
02:40Whoa!
02:40Yeah, that's the way I feel about it.
02:42Savage baseball fan Kevin, everybody.
02:45No.
02:45I don't like this whole concept.
02:47It won't work.
02:48Well, wait a minute.
02:48So just let them go.
02:49Yeah, but hold on.
02:49But you get a brand-new outdoor stadium.
02:51Okay.
02:54Tampa or St. Pete's not going to go for this.
02:56They're not going to pay all this money to be a part-time team.
02:59They're just not.
03:00That's the thing is I just don't think it's going to happen, so it's almost like a waste of breath.
03:03Why spend $750 million or whatever it is on a new stadium to be, you know, used for games from April till June?
03:13I mean, that's—it's unrealistic.
03:15What if they build it at Lang, and then you also get a major league soccer team?
03:18Because that's part of the thing, too.
03:20I—I'm—no.
03:22I don't want to share.
03:23I'm sorry.
03:24I just think it's ridiculous.
03:25Here's one guy that they're not going to talk off the ledge.
03:28This was a Rays fan who showed up at the press conference.
03:31He was kicked out.
03:32But listen to this.
03:33I am me.
03:34I will pack the stadiums.
03:36I will sell all the tickets.
03:37Look at the sunshine.
03:38It's beautiful.
03:39Look at the seashore.
03:40It's beautiful.
03:41This is the most beautiful place in America to live.
03:43I need to move my baseball team.
03:45You are—you are—you are—you are—you are in the courtroom.
03:49You are all traitors.
03:50You're not moving my team.
03:52You're not moving my team.
03:53Calling the ownership.
03:54Traitors.
03:55Traitors.
03:55Nice.
03:55And screaming, and he was making the point.
03:57He's like, look at the weather here.
03:58It's beautiful.
03:58I think he said, look at the seashore.
04:00It's beautiful.
04:00I mean, I can't argue with that.
04:02No, totally.
04:02It's a valid point.
04:03His point is kind of like, what more do you need here, you know?
04:06You need people to go to the games.
04:08That's true.
04:09You do need people to go to the games.
04:10That's what you need.
04:11Stu did say that they'll keep—it's like we're buddies, Stu.
04:14Eh, Stu.
04:16Stu said that they're going to keep the team through the 2027 lease.
04:19That's their plan.
04:20So, that'll be—
04:21Well, I don't think they have an option.
04:23Well—
04:24I love that it's like, oh, well, that's the plan, but also, yeah, we're in a contract.
04:27Well, unless Montreal bought them out, maybe.
04:29Maybe if they bought out, at least to have them full-time up there.
04:32Got it.
04:32But, yeah, a lot of people fired up about that.
04:34800-992-1099.
04:36You can't see any positives on this?
04:38There's nothing, not one glimmer of good?
04:39For me?
04:40No?
04:41No.
04:41Okay.
04:42No, I don't see a positive.
04:43A brand-new stadium, you get a—you know, no, nothing.
04:45All right.
04:45I don't see a positive.
04:46All right.
04:47I'm just—I'm always looking for something that might be like, this is awesome.
04:50Like, this is why we're doing it.
04:51I just—I don't see it.
04:53I don't know—I don't know how it could work.
04:54What if for the first five years of the new stadium, it was free beer?
04:58Hey, wait a second.
05:00Okay, keep them here.
05:01We'll split time.
05:02Let's see.
05:04Stu, Mayor Christman, give me a call.
05:06Do I just share the beer?
05:07I'll negotiate this.
05:08Half-time or—
05:09But what if the beer is like Molson Golden?
05:11What if it's a Canadian beer?
05:12I'm okay with it.
05:13You still don't care?
05:14Would you be?
05:15Look, it's easy to bend these guys, man.
05:17It's easy.
05:17It's easy.
05:17It's easy.
05:17It's easy.
05:18It's easy.
05:18It's easy.
05:18It's easy.