Stephen Nohlgren and Tom Jones took a closer look at the Rays different revenue streams. Most of the numbers in this piece are educated guesses, so there is no way of knowing how accurate the assessment is. But what is important, is that all the talk of the increased television ratings, will mean little for the Rays bottom line until 2016…

Local television contracts can also bring in millions, but after the Rays renewed their contract with Fox Sports Florida in 2008, they are now locked in until 2016, according to Sports Business Daily…Fox, which carries games all over the state on its FSN and Sun Sports channels, pays the Rays an annual fee, then collects the bulk of advertising revenue, as well as payments from cable companies that want to carry the games. The amount of the contract was not disclosed…According to Fox, an average of 94,000 households in the Tampa-St. Petersburg market tuned into Rays games this April, compared with 47,000 last April…That compares to an average annual viewership of 31,000 households in 2007 and 62,000 in 2008, the World Series year.

The Rays may not benefit directly from the up-tick in ratings, but there are some longterm benefits. The Rays will be in a better negotiating position when the time does come for a new television contract. And it could even put the Rays in a position to start their own network. The higher ratings also show that people in Tampa and St. Pete are more interested in the Rays. That may not be reflected in ticket sales, but if this level of interest continues to rise, eventually more people will find their way to The Trop.

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