Long-time Rays fans hope for World Series win

Well, for one couple who's attended nearly every Rays home game since 1998, this fall classic is decades in the making. FOX 13's Blake Devine is live outside Tropicana Field. Hi there, Blake. I'm going to tip your hand just a little bit because I love this story. And for viewers who are going to know this, it almost feels like if you're really paying attention over all the years, everybody's going to know at least who this couple is because we've seen them during almost every single Rays game, have we not? We have indeed, Mark. Jack and Mary Critchfield have become familiar faces. The couple has been married for nearly 40 years. Throughout their marriage, a decades-long devotion to the Tampa Bay Rays. All the good things that have happened in my life really started with baseball and my love for the game. For 93-year-old Jack Critchfield, baseball has always been much more than a game. Back in the 1990s, the former utility executive helped bring an MLB team to Tampa Bay. Ever since opening day in 1999, he and his wife Mary have sat here behind home plate. But not only did she pick up on this baseball, she now knows it as well as or better than I do. And she pushes me to come to the game. Well, I always say that it was our date night with, you know, 15, 20,000 other people. Over the last 28 years, this power couple has attended an average of 78 out of 81 regular season home games. Along the way, they've built a family inside Tropicana Field from fellow fans to stadium staff. We know a lot about people's lives more than sometimes you even know about your own family members. Even the most loyal fans have faced their fair share of obstacles. For the Critchfields, that curveball came two years ago when Hurricane Milton ripped the roof off the Trop. Truly, when the top went off the Trop, more of me than I would like to have felt figured this might be the end. This might be the end of baseball in this area. But the Rays bounced back, both on and off the field. Earlier this month, Jack got the call of a lifetime as the organization asked him to throw out the first pitch before game one of the ALDS. That stadium was so full of people and they were cheering so loudly. I absolutely had to swallow them a couple of times because it didn't just hit me in the heart, it hit me in my soul. And the Critchfields call it one of the best days of their lives. And they will be back here for game three of the World Series on Monday night, hoping their beloved Rays can win that elusive title. Yeah, Blake, thanks much. What do they think about the team's plans to build a new ballpark across the bay in Tampa? Mark, they're actually very excited for the $2.3 billion ballpark. They say the couple, obviously, they're based in Clearwater. They tell me the commute over to Tropicana Field will be about equal to the commute over to the new stadium right by Raymond James Stadium. They've already signed up for season tickets for that state-of-the-art stadium, which is slated to open in 2029. Big butt here, though. The big butt is they've had the best seats at Tropicana Field for the past 20-some years, right behind home plate. Did they tip their hand? Are they going to get home plate seats with the new ballpark? Do we know yet? Mark, I don't know the answer to that question. I would assume they're going to have pretty good seats. Again, they brought the team to Tampa Bay way back in 1998. They don't exactly know yet. Again, the stadium hasn't even started construction, but I would assume they're going to have some pretty good seats. I would bet so. Well, hopefully they get, they certainly deserve it because every single game I've ever watched on TV, I see them right behind home plate. I don't know many of our viewers and fans have too. So we wish them the best, and hopefully they get to see a championship for sure.