I lived in the Tampa Bay area when I graduated college and for a few seasons I'd get unlimited tickets to the Trop to see possibly the worst sports franchise in history. I remember going to see them only when my family or friends were visiting, the Yankees were in town, when they had an interleague game against the Cardinals, or a double-header against the A's, Tigers, Orioles, or some other team. There would always have to be an added attraction to go (such as a free open bar), because the Rays (formerly known as the Devil Rays) were just that bad. Now fastforward three years, they drop the "Devil" in their name to go along with a change in ownership, GM, management, and team uniforms and voila, they are now in the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. This is one of the best "worst to first" feel good stories in sports history! Congrats to Carl Crawford, Rocco Baldelli, Scott Kazmir, B.J. Upton, and anyone else who suffered through the days of the Devil Rays!
