As a 5-year-old growing up in St. Pete, I was a die-hard baseball fan. I cheered for all of the teams that had local spring training ties. I can still tell you the starting lineup for the 1980 world champion Phillies. And the ‘86 Mets.
All that changed when the Rays came to town. I took my 8-year-old daughter to the airport to cheer on the Rays when they made it to the ALCS in 2008. Even after moving to Polk County, we’d make the trek over a few times a year, and we watched over half the games on TV.