COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) -- Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig called the Tampa Bay Rays stadium situation "very, very discouraging" during the league meetings Thursday.
"Baseball
needs a resolution to this problem," Selig said with Stuart Sternberg,
principal owner of the Rays, in the room listening. "I find it a very,
very troubling situation. We were optimistic this was moving in a very
positive direction. Unfortunately, it's stalled."
Selig said the
situation was serious enough that he was giving "very strong
consideration to assigning someone from MLB to intervene in this
process, find out exactly what the hell is going on."
"They've
been a model organization, extraordinarily capable," Selig said.
"They've done everything in their power to make their ballpark situation
work. Years have ticked by now with no tangible progress."
The
team is obligated to play at outdated Tropicana Field through 2027 and
is averaging just over 13,000 fans a game this season. The low
attendance figures have led to the Rays receiving millions of dollars in
revenue sharing.
"Without that, we wouldn't be able to compete,"
Sternberg said. "The other owners are looking at it. How many years is
this going to be? How much money is it going to be? We should be able to
get to the point where the revenue sharing dollars we would receive
don't need to be so significant year in and year out."
Relocating is not on the table, Sternberg said.
"Frankly,
I haven't been able to get this (new stadium deal) done," Sternberg
said. "Something needs to be done and nothing's happening. We've got an
enormous following, but something is clearly stopping people from coming
through our doors. This isn't a one- or two-year thing. Even the
economy has picked up a bit and our attendance has gone down."
