I really believe Sternberg and his buds think that Tampa Bay is a lost cause. The lease on the Trop is inching to a close and there doesn't seem to be any local interest in giving them anything in the way of government support for a new stadium in an area that has the best chance of working. As much as I love baseball, and the Rays, I think they are right.
Baseball got off on the wrong foot here to begin with and has been limping along for 20+ years. St. Pete ain't gonna work and the Rays seem uninterested in talking to the city. A new retractable-roof ballpark in downtown Tampa with public transportation that works might make the Rays a successful draw but that is a big gamble with their own money and I don't think they like the odds. The big tell for me is Jeff Vinik's yawning lack of interest in having the Rays be part of the redevelopment he is doing of the downtown Tampa channel district. Yes, he is a hockey owner but baseball would be a limited overlap and would create a year-round draw to his downtown development. But he's said no, and he owns the only undeveloped land left in downtown.
Like I said earlier in the thread, I think this split-city idea is just a ploy to either get things moving locally or prime the Montreal market for a move. I can see them waiting out the 9 years left on the lease, if they feel they have to, and making an unrestricted move elsewhere.
