'Rays in seven, baby': Superfan Dick Vitale is ready for Tampa's World Series moment

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  J.J. PostOct 22, 2026, 09:00 AM ET

If the broadcast cameras pan to the stands above the visitors' dugout during Game 3 of the World Series at Tropicana Field on Monday, there's a decent chance they'll catch the Tampa Bay Rays' most vocal celebrity fan.

ESPN's Dick Vitale.

From a background standpoint, Vitale doesn't exactly cut the profile of your usual celebrity superfan. The New Jersey native -- born almost 60 years before the Rays played their inaugural season -- grew up a passionate fan of the local teams in the Tristate area and, as a baseball fanatic in particular, spent plenty of time at New York's assorted historic ballparks.

It makes for a remarkable list of all-time venues and players borne witness to: Yankee Stadium, the Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field. Mickey Mantle, Duke Snider, Willie Mays.

Vitale was partial to the Yankees and Mantle as a child. But eventually, as his professional career in coaching and then broadcasting evolved, he would settle in Florida. And when Tampa was awarded an expansion team by Major League Baseball in the 1990s, the legendary commentator was all-in. He quickly moved to grab season tickets ahead of the Rays' maiden campaign in 1998, and he has stuck with the club ever since.

"When I moved here, when I really moved here, I believed in being loyal with the Rays, the Bucs and the Lightning," Vitale told ESPN. "Loyalty is something that's important to me.

"It's just fantastic. There's some great baseball; we have great seats right by the visitors dugout. ... I love baseball, I've loved baseball for many, many a year, and I really enjoy going to the ballgames, getting a chance to meet some of the players, etc., and having a blast."

Make no mistake, Vitale's Rays love isn't just a local side quest, and the season tickets aren't just so he can catch a game now and then -- the fandom bona fides are real. He's happy to gush about Evan Longoria or Junior Caminero, and he can offer home run stats from the last two seasons for the latter off the top of his head.

Or, if you want another form of proof of just how locked in Vitale is, just check his social media during and after big games.

The Rays have played nine games this postseason. Every single one, win or lose -- and it's been mostly wins for Tampa Bay this postseason -- has gotten at least one post before, during or after the game.

The ever-active-on-X Vitale has posted about the Rays 32 times since the team's playoff run started. Monday's American League pennant-clinching win over the Cleveland Guardians alone prompted six.

Asked if he's got a prediction for Tampa Bay's upcoming World Series clash with the Milwaukee Brewers, Vitale gave an unsurprising answer. He was never going to go against his adopted home team.

"Well, you know I'm not going to go against them," Vitale said. "[I'm] reading the Brewers [are] totally favorites; I'm going Rays in seven, baby. And I will be there, all the home games, I will be at all of them."