ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – For the immediate future, the Tampa Bay Rays have found a home for their 2025 baseball season.
Yet, a larger question, like that rainy, wind-swept deluge from Hurricane Milton which destroyed the roof and damaged the infrastructure of Tropicana Field last month, hangs precariously over this franchise. That question begs an answer, and to that refrain, have the Rays played their final game in Tropicana Field?
Considering the economics, it makes little sense for the Rays to consider the Trop as a foreseeable future. For immediate consideration, repairs to the structure have been placed at $55.7 million and could rise. The time window established for such work is about one year. That was the findings of a report submitted to the St. Petersburg city council. Last month, Major League Baseball set a time window of Christmas to the city and the Rays, about six weeks out, to ascertain damage.
That estimate came back in mid-November and indicated the roof and infrastructure can be salvaged. That would require the Rays to seek another home, and several options were considered. On Nov. 14, the Rays announced their entire 2025 home schedule will be played at George Steinbrenner Field, an open-air stadium, in Tampa, and about 20 miles to the northeast of Tropicana Field.
As this decision was made, Rob Manfred, the MLB commissioner, stressed the need and desire for the Rays to remain in the Tampa Bay area. Options included Rays’ home games in Montreal, at potential MLB expansion cities like Nashville or Portland, replacing the vacant A’s in the Oakland Coliseum, and various spring training sites around the state of Florida.
The Rays selected Steinbrenner Field, which opened in 1996 and contains some major league amenities. The facility includes 13 luxury boxes and in 2017, there were $40 million in upgrades
In the end, Steinbrenner Field, and the spring home of the New York Yankees in neighboring Hillsborough County, was designated. That decision, Chris Latvala, a member of the Pinellas County of commissions and county site of the Tropicana Field, told the Tampa ABC affiliate, said he felt “betrayed.” With potential ground-breaking on the Rays’ new $1.3 billion new stadium near the present site of Tropicana Field set for this coming January, the desire of Latvala had the Rays remain in Pinellas County.
In addition to the opposition from Latvala, newly elected commissioners Vince Nowicki and Chris Scherer ran in opposition to the Rays stadium proposal. Earlier this year, the St. Petersburg city council voted to provide $287 million toward the new stadium proposal and the Pinellas County Commissioners added $312 million in financial commitment. The county’s contribution would come through the tourism tax.
However, there could be a change in funding and that’s because of immediate relief needed from the two devastating hurricanes which struck the Tampa Bay area in October. The county commissioners are expected to discuss stadium funding when they meet later this week.
Conversely, St. Petersburg major Ken Welch expressed satisfaction that the Rays simply remain in the area.
“The City is taking the necessary steps and doing our due diligence to make repairs at Tropicana Field,” he said in a statement on the WFTS (the ABC affiliate in Tampa) website. “We want to do this so the Rays can return to St. Petersburg for the 2026 season.”
At this point, does the city of St. Petersburg want to commit that $55.7 million to restore Tropicana Field for only a two-year period? The projected timetable is the Rays’ new stadium to be completed in time for the 2027 season. That gives only two years of activity in Tropicana Field for the nearly $58 million investment.
Despite the preference of Latvala and other Pinellas County commissioners, the Rays could be best served by agreeing to play at the Steinbrenner complex for the next three years. That is, if the Pinellas Couty Commissioners approve funding for the new stadium. If funding is compromised, ground-breaking would be delayed, additional costs will incur, and the future of the entire stadium projects falls into jeopardy.
Granted, the Steinbrenner facility, at 11,000 seating capacity, is not up to the major league standings, but there are improvements. The home clubhouse has been expanded, new lighting has been installed, and player development requirements such as weight room have been improved.
A significant issue facing the Rays and the visiting team remains the weather. Summers in the Tampa region are hot, humid and the reality of rain. At this point, the Rays can expect rain delays at just about any time and plan for rainouts. That would constitute the prospect of a plethora of doubleheaders, and a condition not faced playing indoors at Tropicana Field.
The Rays are now the second team to play their 2025 schedule away from a major league stadium. In preparation of their move to Las Vegas, the Oakland A’s will play their home schedule during the up-coming season in Sutter Health Park in Sacramento. This facility requires significant upgrades to meet major league standards.
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