MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — So much changed for the Tampa Bay Rays last year that absolutely everything, even spooky old Tropicana Field, began to take on a golden World Series glow.
Good thing, because the team's not going anywhere else for a while and the Trop, where a power failure delayed a game for 19 minutes recently, isn't getting any better.
Even with the phenomenon of a worst-to-first 2008 season providing monster momentum, and a chronic ringing in the ears from that cowbell-clanging Game 7 win over Boston in the ALCS, most people in the Tampa Bay area still aren't sure what to make of the Rays, or where to put them.
A Rays vice president announced, for instance, that the team no longer is considering a waterfront spot in downtown St. Petersburg for future stadium construction.
Other potential sites remain to be studied in St. Pete, including a landfill, but with the defending AL champions drawing just 23,896 per home game, ninth in the league, there's no real energy to build a new park anywhere.
This is a Florida problem, bigger than Tampa Bay or Miami. Baseball just doesn't resonate here the way those long ago expansion committees believed it would.
We don't need to walk through all the problems the Marlins have had through the years sinking their hooks into fans. Even with the hopeful symbol of a new ballpark coming in Miami in 2012, it's been a struggle.
If nothing else, the Rays have established themselves as the best team in the state. A fresh World Series appearance gives Tampa Bay tons of credibility there, and a 22-22 record is more than enough to overshadow the Marlins in 2009 as well.
Rays manager Joe Maddon isn't shy about expecting another championship run, and that's why he's perfect for the Tampa Bay market and perfectly deserving of a three-year contract extension.
Asked if he would rather be in a division that includes the Red Sox and the Yankees, or swap slots with the Marlins, who have to get around the world champion Phillies and the Mets in order to win the NL East, Maddon, as is his custom, opted for blooming where he's planted.
"I've always felt it is better to be in that division (the AL East) to become good quicker," Maddon said. "That's exactly what happened to us. I know what it means to play in Yankee Stadium, not the new Yankee Stadium but the old one, and also Fenway Park, where our guys really got a chance to cut our teeth. I think that's really been a significant part of our progress."
So much for geography. How about chemistry? The Rays have more than Florida there, too. Evan Longoria, a sensation in his second season, leads the majors with 49 RBI. Carlos Pena leads the AL with 15 home runs, including a three-run shot on Friday off Ricky Nolasco.
Then there's shortstop Jason Bartlett, the No. 9 batter for Tampa Bay during last year's AL playoffs. He came into Monday's game batting .373, also first in the league. That's better than Marlins star Hanley Ramirez, who's having a great season.
What's going wrong for the Rays is another Marlins parallel. Tampa Bay's rotation, a supposed strength, is all out of whack, with an ERA over 5.00 for the starters and two-time All-Star Scott Kazmir dropping onto the disabled list on Friday with a strained quad.
"There's no rush getting him back," Maddon said. "We want to get it right, get him back to feeling like Kaz, knowing that with him coming back being well and right really enhances our chance to get back to the World Series this year."
There's that glowing October reference again, not just a memory but a goal. That's the edge the Rays have on the Marlins, and one they appear able to keep.
Even in the Sunshine State, a state of general indifference when it comes to this sport, the Marlins have some catching up to do.
Dave George writes for The Palm Beach Post. E-mail: dave(underscore)george(at)pbpost.com.