In most cases, it is not a good thing when the ballpark is practically empty. However, for the Tampa Bay Rays, that is a near constant reality. Saddled with an outdated and difficult to get to home field, the Rays do not draw nearly as well as one would hope, given some of the exciting young players on the team, or the past history of success.
Yesterday, however, that lack of fans worked to the Rays advantage. Twice, the Detroit Tigers outfielders let a ball drop in after hearing someone from the stands yell that they had it, leading them to think the other outfielder was going to catch the ball.