It isn't like attendance actually matters in professional sports. It is all about being in major media markets, and Tampa is a pretty big one. I think a team in the Austin/San Antonio area would do well. You could put it somewhere between the two places and have a lot to draw from. The market size is right. There is no NFL to compete with, and there are plenty of major corps in the area.
I said Pittsburgh. I totally forgot the Pirates. hahaha. With good reason. Yeah, no way they can have 2 clubs.
I've been hearing about nothing but MLB from the talking heads lately, and they seem to be obsessed with the fact that a first place team is last in the league in attendance. Had to chime in
Would New Orleans be able to handle a major league team? The Hornets do pretty well don't they? They could be the New Orleans Sinners.
gotcha.... does anyone thing Vegas should have professional sports teams? There would all kinds of ethics issues. What about San Antonio?
Its surprising that the Marlins don't draw well. Miami has a large Cuban population and Cubans love baseball
they have said countless times they'd be willing to take all of the games for their team off the books in the city. Why not? If someone wants to bet, they'll do it.
they say that now. but if their team gets to a World Series (Super Bowl, NBA Finals, whatever hockey calls it), i have a tough time believing those games won't be on the books. i don't know where Tampa is building their new stadium, but from what i've read/heard, the location of tropicana is absolutely terrible. it's not near anything, so it's pretty much out of the way for season ticket holders. add that to the fact that tropicana is a complete dump, and attendance ain't gonna be pretty. then throw in that they've only been around for 12 years now. most people who can afford tickets are probably old enough to have had a favorite team before the Rays showed up.
