This is from Feb. 9th's "Diamond Notes" by Peter Gammons. - TBGR

Tampa Bay owner Vince Naimoli scoffs at speculation that the Devil Rays will be contracted next winter. "We are not a candidate for contraction then or anytime," says Naimoli. He points out that his club was 19th in revenues last year, has had a positive cash flow the last two years, has pared the payroll down to $34 million ($18.5 million in present-day value go to Greg Vaughn, Wilson Alvarez, John Flaherty and Ben Grieve) and that ticket sales are decent.

A man has to have goals- for a day, for a lifetime- that was mine, to have people say, "There goes Ted Williams, the greatest hitter who ever lived."
- Ted Williams

...has pared the payroll down to $34 million....

He makes this sound like a GOOD thing. "Look, we ain't gonna be contracted because we've dropped our payroll to less than 25% of what the Yankees' payroll is. And we're in the same division as the Yanks. So George Steinbrenner will want to keep us around. We're safe."

The reality is, he's right. The D-Rays WON'T be contracted. Neither will the Expos or Twins, IMO. I don't think a relocated Devil Ray team--not contracted, mind you--is what Naimoli is talking about. But the Rays won't be contracted after all.

Not after paring that payroll down so low for the Yankees.

Portland in the National League.

quote:

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Originally posted by Dodger Matt:
I don't think a relocated Devil Ray team--not contracted, mind you--is what Naimoli is talking about. But the Rays won't be contracted after all.

Not after paring that payroll down so low for the Yankees.

Portland in the _National_ League.

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Huh? What are you talking about here DM? I'm confused!!

Numbers don't lie. People do.
Beware of the Silver & Black attack

... to keep their payroll low. That means they won't be trying to make their team better and his Yankees can beat up on them and win another pennant. I think DM is being a bit sarcastic here - but not much!)

Would that all the teams would trim their payroll a bit. Look, Bud claims the 30 MLB teams lost about 240 million collectively. That averages out to 8 million apiece. The average major league payroll is, what, about 60 million? Now, if each team trimmed its payroll by 15% (in other words, 9 million), then - Voila! The major league average, instead of 8 million LOST, is 1 million PROFIT!

You can't go spending more than you're bringing in - simple business fact from a mind that is very simple when it comes to money (Mine) - for very long, or of course you're going to be in trouble. Only the federal government can get away with that!

The D-Rays aren't going away, by contraction or by relocation (I don't think). I expect the Expos to be moved to Washington if Bud will acquiese and let Fred Malek buy them like he wants to, but that's about the only movement I expect. If they get the economics straightened out next year, I think everyone else can be reasonably successful where they are, although I still think the Bay Area needs only one team.

Move the A's to Portland!

Given how things are now down in Florida, I wouldn't be surprised if Florida voters balked at building the D-Rays a new facility after the current lease expires. A lot can happen in 20 years though, but I wonder if Florida voters' minds will change. I doubt it. Even if these new revenue sharing proposals are passed, I still see teams relocating just because the owners are greedy. It's true. They've got the Al Davis fever!! Hopefully, that, more than anything else, will help Portland get a team.

Numbers don't lie. People do.
Beware of the Silver & Black attack