With Tropicana Field deemed unplayable due to hurricane damage, Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says his preference is for the Tampa Bay Rays to find a temporary stadium in their home market.
But for now, Manfred only know the Rays will play in 2025.
But where?
"We don’t know,” Manfred said during an interview on “The Varsity” podcast with John Ourand.
“We're hopeful that we can figure out something in Tampa (Bay) for them, and that the repairs can be done in a way that allows them to resume playing.”
Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm Oct. 10 near Siesta Key, about 40 miles south of downtown St. Petersburg. Winds of more than 100 mph left most of the stadium’s Teflon-coated fabric roof in tatters and likely damaged the roof’s tension-rigging skeleton. The storm also dropped nearly 2 feet rain on the inside infrastructure.
The city of St. Petersburg, which owns the building, has started to assess the damage.
“We were on a path where the useful life of that facility was short, you know, really costly repairs and a short-life facility. I don't need to connect the dots there for you. That's another complication.”Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred
The city has hired the Hennessy/AECOM firm to do a complete analysis of the damage and contracted with another company to remove the remaining roof material, said St. Petersburg spokeswoman Alizza Punzalan-Randle. The city has also filed a claim with its insurance carrier, she said.
“We will have more information on next steps once the analyses have been completed and the remaining roof has been removed,” Punzalan-Randle said.
City Council member Brandi Gabbard said she expected the analysis by the first week of November.
“At that point we will have a better picture of the path forward,” Gabbard said.
Manfred characterized the destruction as “substantial.”
Stadium analysis will take weeks
According to the Rays, it will take several weeks to assess the damage and determine next steps. One thing for sure, it’s unlikely repairs can be made in time for 2025 home opener on March 27.
So, would it be worth the cost to make those repairs, especially with a new $1.3 billion stadium slated to open in 2028?
“We were on a path where the useful life of that facility was short, you know, really costly repairs and a short-life facility,” Manfred said. “I don't need to connect the dots there for you. That's another complication.”
It’s expected that Major League Baseball will be involved in any decision-making.
“They lost the roof. It’s particularly problematic in a building that was not designed to drain, because it was a covered building. And in a climate where it rains a lot, it's going to be a challenge.”
For MLB, the easiest option is to stay in the Tampa Bay market.
“If we can manage it,” Manfred said.
Several possible options across the region
That could occur with the array of spring training facilities in the region that could be made MLB ready with relatively limited upgrades. These include Clearwater’s BayCare Ballpark, Dunedin’s TD Ballpark and Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field.
However, limited seating capacity and the obvious exposure to Florida’s routine summer rains are problematic. Also, all three host minor-league teams, which could lead to scheduling issues.
Al Lang Stadium, only a few blocks from the Trop, is off the table for now due to its own hurricane damage. Once a spring training facility, Al Lang is now configured for soccer’s Tampa Bay Rowdies, who have to move their season’s final games to IMG Academy in Bradenton, team president Ryan Helfrick said.
Also close by is Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports complex near Orlando, where the Atlanta Braves trained from 1998 to 2019.
The Rays played a handful of regular-season games there in the late 2000s. They also trained there briefly in 2023 while their facility in Port Charlotte underwent repairs after it was damaged by Hurricane Ian.
The Disney complex would involve the fewest complications, but scheduling conflicts with various youth events could stand in the way.
Farther south, the Port Charlotte complex does not host a minor-league team, but would take some effort to upgrade for a full season of MLB games.
Other spring training facilities that could be considered are Bradenton’s Lecom Park, Lakeland’s Publix Field and Sarasota’s Ed Smith Stadium, which no longer has a minor-league team.
LoanDepot Park in Miami has a roof ─ but also a main MLB tenant in the Miami Marlins. Distance from Tampa Bay and scheduling conflicts would need to be taken into consideration.
Beyond Florida, the Rays’ minor league team in Durham, North Carolina, announced it cannot take in the Rays. But Buffalo, Omaha, Charlotte and Nashville could host major-league games. As Manfred noted, being away from local fans for up to three years would not be a first option.
Montreal, where the Rays once flirted with playing split seasons, is unavailable. Ironically, Olympic Park is undergoing a $870 million renovation that includes its roof.
Information from WUSF’s Gabriella Paul and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
