Give Stu Sternberg this - he's definitely softening up. Conspiracy theorists may say it's simply a shift in his stadium-seeking philosophy. However, his 30-minute chat with reporters on Wednesday (and December sit-down interview with me) are a nice start toward repairing his image in Tampa Bay.
Aside from shrugging off the notion that he'd be interested in purchasing the Dodgers or Mets (everyone knows he wants to buy the Yankees, not the Mets!), Sternberg indicated he was taking his foot off the throttle a bit when it comes to the team's search for a new home.
"There is nobody to blame," Sternberg told Gary Shelton from the St. Petersburg Times regarding the stadium saga. "This is our situation."
Sternberg added he had not been contacted by any other cities about relocating despite his threat last summer that there were five markets better for baseball than Tampa Bay.
Roger Mooney from the Tampa Tribune reports that Sternberg said movement might happen this year on the stadium issue, but "if it's going to fall totally on my shoulders, no."
Much like advocates of light rail in Tampa Bay, it seems Sternberg is keen to the anti-spending sentiment out there these days and is content in waiting some time before putting the pedal to the metal again on the issue.
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Really, softening up? When he went on to tell Shelton: "Every year that goes by increases the possibility that we won't be here"?
ReplyDeleteNeil,
ReplyDeleteWhat about that statement is not true? Sorry, Neil, that's the reality here. Build a new stadium or they are gone. PERIOD! I think we have a 2-3 year window to have a plan firmly in place or it's bye bye Rays.
At that point, I'll be hoping Orlando (which tends to operate more regionally, while Tampa Bay operates on a feudal model) can make a play and keep them close.
I got to disagree about the softening up BIG TIME here, Noah. Neil is right. From watching the video and Shelton's own "spin doctoring" I get the vibe that Stu wants to get all the credit and take none of the responsibility or negativiity.
ReplyDeleteThat quote Neil and Noah, is a veiled threat without the consequence. I think Stu is conflicted and doesn't have the know-how or tact to make it right.
ReplyDelete