Tinker's Last Stand (1999)

 

With The Orlando Rays Moving To Disney World Next Year, Longtime Fans Paid Tribute To Orlando's Venerable Baseball Stadium.

August 30, 1999|By L.C. Johnson of The Sentinel Staff

Nearly 6,000 fans stopped by Tinker Field over the weekend to say goodbye to an old friend.

The Orlando Rays, the last in a long line of professional minor-league baseball teams who have called Tinker Field home, completed their last homestand of the 1999 Southern League season Sunday night.

The fact that the O-Rays lost the game to Jacksonville 8-3 to fall into a first-place tie with the Suns was almost a moot point.

Several Orlando area fans, many of whom have been following baseball at Tinker Field since the late '50s, were saddened by the news that the O-Rays will move to the Disney's Wide World of Sports for the 2000 season.

``I'm very broken-hearted,'' said Bob Richardson, 62, who first began attending games at Tinker in 1957. ``It's very sad that the City of Orlando and the Mayor [Glenda Hood] did not see fit to upgrade this facility.

``I'm very sad that after all the years that they were the Washington Senators and the Twins, which was like 47 years - the longest in the state of Florida - they lost their franchise to Fort Myers ... And if you travel around the state of Florida and see all of the beautiful new ballparks, you'll understand why nobody wants to play here.''

Tinker Field is not the only casualty of the O-Rays' move. The season has been especially tough for O-Rays General Manager Tom Ramsberger and his staff. None of them will accompany the team when the operation moves out to Disney next season, meaning this is a lame-duck management.

``I put a lot into this, but I really feel bad for the fans, the sponsors and especially my staff,'' Ramsberger said. ``The primary reason I was brought on with the Devil Rays three years ago was to help work with the city and county to try to find a way to either get a stadium built or renovate this one.

``I can truly say the Devil Rays had no intention of leaving Orlando three years ago. When things didn't work out with the stadium, we had to look at other options.''

A small, but dedicated group of season-ticket holders held a final tailgating party under a tent located behind the third-base grandstands Saturday night. It carried over until Sunday. They all autographed a banner that carried the message: `The team is leaving, but the memories will always be here: Tinker Field 1914- .''

This same group of fans erected a couple of tombstones to mark the sad occasion. The tombstones had been part of the tailgate party decorations Saturday. On Sunday, the tombstones greeted fans in front of Tinker Field: ``Here lies a fan put here by an owner with no game plan. RIP 1999.'' The other tombstone read: ``RIP: season-ticket holders, loyal and dedicated, both day and night, to move the team just ain't right.''

The fans are evenly split on being angered at the Orlando city officials and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the parent club of the O-Rays. They're mad at the city's failure or unwillingness to fund Tinker Field improvements. They're also mad at the Devils Rays for flirting with the idea of moving the team to Tallahassee and subsequently moving to Kissimmee.

``For the last couple of years, everything has been going down as far as the season-ticket holder goes,'' said Steve Mellich, a season-ticket holder since 1984. ``The fans are the ones who have made the Orlando Rays. Disney did not. Disney didn't have a damn thing to do with this ballpark here. They may have a beautiful park out there and everything. But this one could be, too, if the city would put a little money into it.''

Cathie Kissic, another longtime season-ticket holder and frequent visitor to Tinker Field, recalls Tampa Bay Devil Rays General Manager Vincent Naimoli throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at the home opener.

``Naimoli insulted the Orlando fans the very first time he came here by talking about how he got rust on his white leisure suit while sitting in the stands,'' Kissic said. ``I've been coming here for years, and I've never gotten any rust on my clothes.

``He was just looking for a reason to complain because he didn't want his team to be here. And that's not fair to the fans, who've been supporting this team. There are a lot of us who have practically raised our children here, and our kids have been season-ticket holders for 10 years.''

What has been lost amid all of the off-the-field squabbles is that the O-Rays remain in a pennant race with a chance to make the playoffs. Despite the strong show of fan support over the weekend, Orlando still ranks last in the Southern League in attendance. But that won't be a factor in this playoff chase. The O-Rays have eight remaining games, all of which will be on the road at Birmingham and Huntsville.

``We've been dealing with that [smaller crowds] all year, and we haven't let it bother us,'' O-Rays Manager Bill Russell said. ``We like to see the fans who

They're mad at the city's failure or unwillingness to fund Tinker Field improvements. They're also mad at the Devils Rays for flirting with the idea of moving the team to Tallahassee and subsequently moving to Kissimmee.

``For the last couple of years, everything has been going down as far as the season-ticket holder goes,'' said Steve Mellich, a season-ticket holder since 1984. ``The fans are the ones who have made the Orlando Rays. Disney did not. Disney didn't have a damn thing to do with this ballpark here. They may have a beautiful park out there and everything. But this one could be, too, if the city would put a little money into it.''

Cathie Kissic, another longtime season-ticket holder and frequent visitor to Tinker Field, recalls Tampa Bay Devil Rays General Manager Vincent Naimoli throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at the home opener.

``Naimoli insulted the Orlando fans the very first time he came here by talking about how he got rust on his white leisure suit while sitting in the stands,'' Kissic said. ``I've been coming here for years, and I've never gotten any rust on my clothes.

``He was just looking for a reason to complain because he didn't want his team to be here. And that's not fair to the fans, who've been supporting this team. There are a lot of us who have practically raised our children here, and our kids have been season-ticket holders for 10 years.''

What has been lost amid all of the off-the-field squabbles is that the O-Rays remain in a pennant race with a chance to make the playoffs. Despite the strong show of fan support over the weekend, Orlando still ranks last in the Southern League in attendance. But that won't be a factor in this playoff chase. The O-Rays have eight remaining games, all of which will be on the road at Birmingham and Huntsville.

``We've been dealing with that [smaller crowds] all year, and we haven't let it bother us,'' O-Rays Manager Bill Russell said. ``We like to see the fans who come out and support us, and we've had some good crowds this weekend.

``But [the number of fans) that's not our problem. That's other people's problems. We just have to do what we have to do out on the field. Our main concern is to win the games.''

This was over ten years ago and Mayor Buddy Dyer has let the field rot!

 

 Ryne Sandberg at Tinker Field. The game was a sell out.