Three things seem assured on the subject of the Rays’ future in Tampa Bay.
First, St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster is–and has been–more of a barrier to progress than even Bud Selig, the problematic commissioner of Major League Baseball. In the name of “protecting taxpayers,” Foster has been playing that legally-intimidating, Tampa-targeting, “tortious interference” card since he came to office four years ago. Selig voices MLB’s consensus concern that baseball revenue-sharing shouldn’t be a permanent subsidy–especially for a winning franchise.
Second, the lease that binds the Rays to the Trop through 2027 decreases in leverage each year. For a serious suitor, one that has ridden out the recession and is enamored of major league-market status, a lease buy-out would be part of the cost of doing business.
Third, everything’s on hold through the MLB playoffs, the World Series and St. Petersburg’s mayoral election.