Tropicana Field

The Orlando Dreamers, an organization founded in 2019 to lure a team to Central Florida, is renewing its quest for a team with Hall of Fame shortstop Barry Larkin as its frontman.

The state's spring training sites come alive once again. And Rays fans get a brief respite from stadium talk while the team preps for an entire season played outdoors in Tampa.

The next move is up to the team as to whether it will honor an agreement to build a new stadium as the lynchpin to the biggest redevelopment plan in Pinellas County's history.

If hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field does get repaired, it likely won't be in time for the start of the 2026 season, as requested by the team. The use agreement "does not establish a deadline" for doing so.

The Rays are not the only ones unable to use the storm-battered stadium. More than 50 events, including high school graduations, have to relocate.

The Rays worked with Major League Baseball to craft a schedule that considers weather, traffic and other events in the area. Starting in June, weeknight games begin at 7:35 and Sunday games at 12:05 p.m.

Even a partial 2026 season at Tropicana Field “would present massive logistical and revenue challenges for the team,” team president Matt Silverman wrote to the city.

2024 came with a lot of challenges for the Sunshine State, including multiple hurricanes that threatened coastal communities and a contentious presidential election with many local and state seats up for grabs.

The next move is up to the Rays after two Pinellas County commissioners flipped their earlier opposition and voted in favor of allocating bed tax money to help build a new stadium.

Tropicana Field's hurricane-damaged roof and delays to votes on public financing are threatening plans for a new ballpark for the Tampa Bay Rays

The on-again, off-again quest to build a new baseball stadium as part of the massive Historic Gas Plant redevelopment is now in the hands of Pinellas County commissioners.

Tampa Bay's manager says playing at Steinbrenner Field a “fun, exciting, good challenge." The team is playing at the Yankees' spring training ballpark because of hurricane damage at Tropicana Field.