In Tampa, John Romano notes the Rays have finished last in the AL in attendance the past six seasons, but their numbers are "somehow getting worse." The Rays are on pace to "finish with their lowest attendance" since '03. The team is "on pace to win 89 games," but fans are "avoiding Tropicana Field with such regularity that everyone should finally recognize why ownership wants to escape downtown St. Petersburg." Attendance in '18 "doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things," but the empty seats at the Trop are "more glaring than ever" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 9/11).
EXECUTIVE STRUGGLE? In N.Y., Mike Puma notes Mets Chair & CEO Fred Wilpon and COO Jeff Wilpon are "disagreeing on a path to follow in hiring [GM] Sandy Alderson's replacement to lead the front office." Fred Wilpon reportedly "favors an experienced baseball person with roots in scouting and player development over the industry trend of hiring younger executives with a slant toward analytics." Sources said that Jeff Wilpon would "prefer a more analytics-savvy general manager." A source said that the final call "will almost certainly belong to Fred Wilpon alone" (N.Y. POST, 9/11).
SOAKING IT IN: In Chicago, Barry Rozner wrote this period of Cubs baseball is the "best in more than a century." It "might be the best" Cubs fans "will see" in their lifetime. Fans should "find a way to enjoy this season and those that will follow, because it may never be this good again" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 9/10).
