Q 01/05

In which city is the Rays' home ballpark, Tropicana Field, located?

A) Tampa

B) Tarpon Springs

C) St. Petersburg

D) Clearwater

Answer · why

C) St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg finished the ballpark in 1990 to attract a big-league club, then waited eight years before the Devil Rays played a game there.

Q 02/05

Which other expansion team entered Major League Baseball alongside the Devil Rays in 1998?

A) Colorado Rockies

B) Arizona Diamondbacks

C) Florida Marlins

D) Houston Astros

Answer · why

B) Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona Diamondbacks. The twins' fates split at once: Arizona won the World Series in 2001, its fourth season, while Tampa Bay had a losing record in ...

Q 03/05

Which businessman won the Tampa Bay expansion franchise in 1995 after his deal to buy the Giants was blocked?

A) Vince Naimoli

B) Frank Morsani

C) Stuart Sternberg

D) Peter Magowan

Answer · why

A) Vince Naimoli

Vince Naimoli had agreed to pay $115 million for the Giants and move them to Tampa Bay, but the National League took a lower bid that kept the team in...

Q 04/05

The Devil Rays' first-choice name, 'Sting Rays', already belonged to a winter-league club in which location?

A) Key West

B) Maui

C) Miami

D) Sarasota

Answer · why

B) Maui

Maui, whose Stingrays played in Hawaii's winter league, already held the name. Rather than buy the rights, the new club simply chose a different kind ...

Q 05/05

Which alternative to 'Devil Rays' did the club offer fans in a 1995 telephone poll?

A) Eagle Rays

B) Manta Rays

C) Bat Rays

D) Electric Rays

Answer · why

B) Manta Rays

Manta Rays was the fallback after objections to the word devil, but the club declared the original the winner of the phone vote and the name stayed.