The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team that competes in the American League (AL) East Division. They are based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The team’s home arena has been Tropicana Field since its inception.
After almost 30 years of trying to get an expansion franchise to the Tampa Bay Area, Vince Naimoli prepared an ownership group approved in March of 1995. Vince Naimoli had previously come close to purchasing the San Francisco Giants (in 1992) before MLB intervention. Naimoli was embroiled in a short trademark dispute right away, as he wanted the name ‘Tampa Bay Sting Rays,’ but the Maui Sting Rays already owned the rights. An agreement for the name couldn’t be reached, so they settled on a local variety – the devil ray.
The Tampa Bay Devil Rays launched in the 1998 Major League Baseball season. The team’s first ten years of playing didn’t go well; they finished last in the AL season in every season (except for 2004), when they finished second to last. After the 2007 season, Stuart Sternberg changed the team’s name to ‘Rays’ from ‘Devil Rays’ after purchasing the controlling interest in the franchise from Vince Naimoli. The ‘Rays’ usually refers to a burst of sunshine rather than the manta ray, though this ray is still seen on some uniform sleeves.
In 2007 the Tampa Bay Rays had their first winning season, their first American League East championship, and the first American League Pennant (when they defeated their rival team, the Boston Red Sox) though they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series that year. After that, the Rays competed in the postseason six times, winning the American League Pennant again in 2020 though they lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Tampa Bay Ray’s historical rivals are the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, who also play in the AL East. There have been many on-field incidents involving the latter. The Rays also have an interleague rivalry with the NL’s Miami Marlins (also known as the Florida Marlins), with whom they compete within Citrus Series.
The Rays launched a ‘Turn Back The Clock’ event with throwback uniform colors and retro themes early in their existence, and it’s become a yearly event since 2006. Since the 2007 rebrand, the Rays first re-used the Devil Rays name in 2009, employing their old ‘Rainbow’ uniforms from their 1998 debut. They returned to the colors in 2018 to honor their 20th anniversary.
Famous Tampa Bay Rays trademarks
The Tampa Bay Rays are a popular team with a passionate following, and as of 2022, they have an estimated net worth of more than a billion dollars. They have an array of trademarks dating from 1995 onwards. Let’s look at some of the most famous Tampa Bay Ray trademarks, all registered under the Tampa Bay Rays Baseball LTD name.
Devil Rays
The oldest trademark registered by the Tampa Bay Rays is the original name ‘Devil Rays,’ which the team played under for several years. The Devil Rays’ wordmark filing took place in 1995 and is registered in several categories:
- Entertainment services related to baseball games
- Metal key fobs, name tags, key rings, name badges, and novelty license plates
- Catcher’s helmets and baseball helmets
- Goods and services including printed matter and paper goods, superficially trading cards, notepaper, notebooks, unmounted photographs, drawing rulers, greeting cards, decorative pencil top ornaments, stickers, and decals
- Bags including athletic bags, overnight bags, and luggage bags
- Credit card and business card cases
- Mugs and glassware
- Bottle openers
- Portable coolers
- Clothing includes shirts, socks, cloth bibs, sweatshirts, shirts, etc.
- Toys and sporting goods, including baseball-related toys, video games, video game cartridges, Christmas tree ornaments, and novelty ornaments
- Smokers articles including lighters and ashtrays
Tampa Bay Devil Rays logo (1997)
This is the first and most recognizable Tampa Bay Rays logo, and following its first use in 1997, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays logo was registered in 2000. This logo features a circular design with stylized writing ‘Tampa Bay’ above ‘Devil Rays’ and a manta ray design to the left. The logo is registered for use in:
- Electronic games
- Golf balls and golf games
- Entertainment services related to baseball games
- Metal key fobs, name tags, key rings, name badges, and novelty license plates
- Catcher’s helmets and baseball helmets
- Printed matter and paper goods, superficially trading cards, notepaper, notebooks, unmounted photographs, drawing rulers, greeting cards, decorative pencil top ornaments, stickers, and decals
- Dartboards and darts
- Rubber action balls
- Bags including athletic bags, overnight bags, and luggage bags
- Credit card and business card cases
- Mugs and glassware
- Bottle openers
- Portable coolers
- Clothing including shirts, socks, cloth bibs, sweatshirts, shirts, and more
- Toys and sporting goods, including baseball-related toys, video games, video game cartridges, Christmas tree ornaments, and novelty ornaments
DJ Kitty logo
DJ Kitty is the Tampa Bay Rays mascot and came from an internet meme of a kitten playing a DJ system and dancing to music. The car wears Tampa Bay Rays jewelry and wears a Ray cap backward. The DJ Kitty logo consists of DJ Kitty’s iconic look and a banner saying “DJ Kitty – Property of the Tampa Bay Rays” was registered in 2013 in the following categories:
- Entertainment services, including fan services and mascot services
- Live and virtual playback of baseball games and competitions
- Information services, including providing information on sports, entertainment, and related topics
- Toys and sporting goods, namely, stuffed toys, plush toys, foam toys, foam novelty items, foam fingers, toy banks, toy figures, dolls, bobbing head dolls, miniature baseball bats, baseballs, and baseball bats, party favors like noisemakers
- Clothing, namely, caps, hats, visors, T-shirts, tank tops, pullovers, shorts, pants, baseball uniforms, jerseys, sweatshirts, sleepwear, jackets, cloth bibs, infant wear, creepers
Learn more: The steps to trademarking a logo
“Rays Up”
This mark includes a yellow/white sunburst beneath the word “Rays” in white with black highlights, left to the term “Up” in white with black highlights. The trademark was registered in 2018 for use in:
- Professional baseball services, namely, entertainment like baseball games
- Community service initiatives, namely, organizing and conducting volunteer programs and community service projects
DJ Kitty
DJ Kitty is also trademarked; the trademark registration took place in 2013, following its first use in 2012. The name “DJ Kitty” is trademarked for use in the following categories:
- Clothing, namely, caps, hats, visors, shirts, T-shirts, tank tops, pullovers, shorts, pants, baseball uniforms, jerseys, sweatshirts, sleepwear, jackets, cloth bibs, infant wear, creepers
- Crowd entertainment services, namely, live and video performances of a costumed and virtual mascot; film and video production; entertainment services, namely, baseball games, competitions, and tournaments
- Exhibitions that are rendered live and through broadcast media, including television, radio, satellite, wireless, audio and video media, telephone, fiber optics, wireless networks, and other electronic media, and via a global computer network or a commercial online service
- Stuffed toys, plush toys, toy figures, etc.
Wrapping up
You should submit trademark applications with the USPTO to protect your intellectual property, particularly if you have a recognizable brand with high brand value, as intellectual property can be worth more than physical property. The Tampa Bay Rays franchise is worth around 1.1 billion USD, and they protect this with a portfolio of more than 40 trademarks registered with the trademark office.
