Around the League - 2021 Szn

[Coredor]

One could tell Cabrera was going to hit from the get-go. He played SS and 3B almost exclusively in the minors but the Marlins wanted to get his bat into the line-up and OF it was.

Chipper was a popular comp at the time.

[Southcack77]

One could tell Cabrera was going to hit from the get-go. He played SS and 3B almost exclusively in the minors but the Marlins wanted to get his bat into the line-up and OF it was.

He had 3B eligibility in my fantasy league after that first season so he must have played a fair amount of games there-- at least 15.

I'm old enough to have gotten him off waivers when he first came up.

[50PoundHead]

He had 3B eligibility in my fantasy league after that first season so he must have played a fair amount of games there-- at least 15.

I'm old enough to have gotten him off waivers when he first came up.

He did. He was a rookie when he had the dust-up with the Braves' bench after the hard tag on Bragg while playing 3B.

[clvclv]

3-4 years/$40-$50 million for Dansby sure doesn't look bad when you see the Crawford deal...

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/...extension.html

[Tapate50]

Fernando Tatis Jr playing RF.

[Southcack77]

3-4 years/$40-$50 million for Dansby sure doesn't look bad when you see the Crawford deal...

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/...extension.html

I'm a little surprised that they're sticking with an aging core player but given his surge and the still good defense and just two years I guess it makes sense.

[Freshmaker]

Dodgers putting Braves legend Cole Hamels on the 60 Day DL, and are calling up Braves legend Neftali Feliz

[bravesfanforlife88]

Conversation

Marc Topkin
@TBTimes_Rays
Tonight's crowd of 5,460 is smallest ever for a #Rays game at Trop without COVID-related restrictions on capacity (as earlier this season). Smallest was 5,786 on May 28, 2019; had 5,855 on Aug 2 this year

[NYCBrave]

Conversation

Marc Topkin
@TBTimes_Rays
Tonight's crowd of 5,460 is smallest ever for a #Rays game at Trop without COVID-related restrictions on capacity (as earlier this season). Smallest was 5,786 on May 28, 2019; had 5,855 on Aug 2 this year

Time to move the team. Not fair to treat a first place team that way. Then again, Covid has gotten pretty bad in Florida, so not sure if people are not showing up due to concerns.

[50PoundHead]

Time to move the team. Not fair to treat a first place team that way. Then again, Covid has gotten pretty bad in Florida, so not sure if people are not showing up due to concerns.

Were there weather issues yesterday in addition to the COVID spike? I'm having a hard time keeping track of all the travails Florida is facing these days.

[Tapate50]

Were there weather issues yesterday in addition to the COVID spike? I'm having a hard time keeping track of all the travails Florida is facing these days.

Yeah they had a tropical depression "FRED" coming up the west coast.

[Carp]

It just seems unlikely to me that baseball will ever be that popular in FL. Granted, Miami didn't really get a fair shake with the arguably the worst owner in the history of sports. Hard to build a fan base when he consistenntly ripped very talented teams apart and had the lowest payroll in the league for years.

But Tampa has had ample time to build the fan base. They hired very good management, have been great at player development in the minors, developed some legit stars and signed some of those stars to long term deals, and overall they've made a concerted effort to field competitive teams. Yet Tampa wants nothing to do with them it seems. Yes, the stadium issues were a mess, but if people were really big baseball fans in the area, they'd come out more.

[Tapate50]

It just seems unlikely to me that baseball will ever be that popular in FL. Granted, Miami didn't really get a fair shake with the arguably the worst owner in the history of sports. Hard to build a fan base when he consistenntly ripped very talented teams apart and had the lowest payroll in the league for years.

But Tampa has had ample time to build the fan base. They hired very good management, have been great at player development in the minors, developed some legit stars and signed some of those stars to long term deals, and overall they've made a concerted effort to field competitive teams. Yet Tampa wants nothing to do with them it seems. Yes, the stadium issues were a mess, but if people were really big baseball fans in the area, they'd come out more.

Very transient area. Not saying its right, but most don't have a full time loyalty to places like that in FLA.

[50PoundHead]

Very transient area. Not saying its right, but most don't have a full time loyalty to places like that in FLA.

Isn't there a heavy retiree population with a fair number of them being Northern snowbirds that spend their summers in the climes from which they previously hailed? I know a number of relatively well-off Minnesotans (many of whom are retired) are "183 residents" of Florida because if they spend at least half the year in Florida, they can escape Minnesota income taxes. They spend their summers at their Northern Minnesota lake cabin (cabin being a very misleading term) and their winters in Florida.

[Tapate50]

Isn't there a heavy retiree population with a fair number of them being Northern snowbirds that spend their summers in the climes from which they previously hailed. I know a number of relatively well-off Minnesotans (many of whom are retired) are "183 residents" of Florida because if they spend at least half the year in Florida, they can escape Minnesota income taxes. They spend their summers at their Northern Minnesota lake cabin (cabin being a very misleading term) and their winters in Florida.

I believe that is still the case. That area of FLA is known for their large retirement communities.

[50PoundHead]

I believe that is still the case. That area of FLA is known for their large retirement communities.

It's really hard to build a fan base when so much disposable income isn't around during the baseball season. I remember visiting the Gulf Coast between Tampa-St. Petersburg and Fort Myers years ago and there was much more Yankee merchandise on display than Rays'. A lot of that had to do with Steinbrenner's presence in Tampa, but I did find it interesting.

[PawPawMaxwell]

Not the easiest stadium to reach. Parking is so so at best.

[thethe]

Population shifts would make it seem its a smart move to stay put in Tampa.

[GovClintonTyree]

Not the easiest stadium to reach. Parking is so so at best.

The very boot of St. Petersburg was not a good decision for that stadium. It would be analogous to putting the Mets in Montauk or the Sox in Provincetown. And the facility itself is lousy, kinda like the Kingdome without the cavernous mausoleum charm.

If you put 'em up around the airport near the Bucs, still accessible to Pinellas but on the (less transient) Tampa side, that franchise would draw fine.

[bravesfanMatt]

Population shifts would make it seem its a smart move to stay put in Tampa.

if populations are really shifting, wouldn't they just be still fans of their original team? It would take generations to build true loyal fans from just population shifts.