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It's been a wild offseason for the Tampa Bay Rays. Not only did they miss the playoffs for the first time since 2018, they lost their home stadium just 10 days later.
Hurricane Milton made landfall Oct. 9 off Florida's Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm with 120 mph winds. About 50 miles north in St. Petersburg, winds from the hurricane tore the paneling off the roof of Tropicana Field, where the Rays have played since their first season in 1998. Video of the Trop's roof being blown apart went viral that night, and the following morning, photos of the coverless stadium became the lasting images of the storm's aftermath.
Today, the Rays play the Colorado Rockies on Opening Day of the 2025 season at Steinbrenner Field, across the bay in Tampa. It comes a day after the rest of Major League Baseball played their first game of the season because the league gave the Rays extra time to prepare their temporary home, which for the previous month had been the spring training home of the New York Yankees. The park's new look was shown off to the team Thursday.
The future of the Rays is unclear. Repairing Tropicana Field will cost more than $55 million, and there have been questions over whether that's even worth doing because the team was supposed to move to a new stadium in 2028. But the plans for that $1.3 billion complex have been scrapped after months of back-and-forth between the Rays and local officials over public funding. That could lead to the Trop being restored after all. There are even rumors of MLB forcing owner Stuart Sternberg to sell the team while the team looks for another place to play.
For 2025, at least, the Rays will stay in Tampa under covered-up or taken-down logos of their AL East rivals. Here's a look back at how we got here:
Hurricane Milton devastated a large part of Florida, with the eye making landfall south of Sarasota about 8:30 p.m. Oct. 9 before the Category 3 storm made its way across the state, bringing tornadoes as far away as the Atlantic Coast. At least 25 people died, and millions were left without power.
The lasting image of the damage was the roof being ripped off Tropicana Field. The stadium was built in 1990, and while the Teflon-coated fiberglass was designed to withstand winds up to 115 mph, the material hadn't been upgraded since the dome was built. The Trop was used as a base camp for emergency crews ahead of the storm, but no injuries were reported when the roof came off. It wasn't the only stadium to get pounded: Video from inside Raymond James Stadium showed floodwaters pouring into the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
As cleanup began in St. Petersburg, some enterprising individuals grabbed pieces of the shredded roof (among other parts of the stadium) and put them on auction sites including eBay.
The Tampa Bay Times reported that because of safety concerns, including not just the playing field but also offices inside the complex, Tropicana Field likely would not be playable for the 2025 season. The Rays were scheduled to open the season March 27.
On an episode of "The Varsity" podcast, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said if Tropicana Field can't be fixed in time for Opening Day, he wants the team to remain in the Tampa/St. Pete area if possible. "We're hopeful that we can figure out something in (the Tampa Bay area) for them and that the repairs can be done in a way that allows them to resume playing," Manfred said. "The easiest thing is always to stay in the market where the clubs are anchored, if we can manage it." He also said he wanted a decision to be made for the 2025 season by Christmas.
In the council's first meeting since the hurricane, St. Petersburg leaders approved $6.5 million to clean and repair the Trop.
A week after approving an initial cleanup package, St. Pete leaders formally asked for an official estimate on the extent of damage done to the stadium. A report from WTSP said officials estimated $75 million of total damage from Hurricane Milton, with the Trop accounting for nearly $50 million.
First reported by The Tampa Bay Times, the report submitted to St. Pete City Council showed $39 million in damage was done to Tropicana Field, with $23.6 million coming from the destroyed roof. The stadium would cost about $55 million to fix, and while the fixes could be made in time for the 2026 season, the upcoming baseball season would have to be played elsewhere.
Rays owner Stuart Sternberg said in a news release the team would make its temporary home Steinbrenner Field, the 11,206-seat spring training home of the New York Yankees across the street from the Buccaneers' stadium in Tampa. MLB said it would take down or cover up Yankees signage as best it could on the field, on the concourse and in the clubhouse to make it feel more like home for the Rays.
The Rays and Yankees played to a 3-3 tie Sunday, ending New York's preseason schedule at its spring home. This let Rays staff take over the complex and start converting the stadium into the Rays' home for the next six months.
Ryan Pepiot gets the start for Tampa Bay against Colorado's Kyle Freeland at 4:05 p.m. ET for the final season opener on the 2025 MLB calendar.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Tampa Bay Rays stadium timeline from hurricane to Steinbrenner Field
Continue reading...
Hurricane Milton made landfall Oct. 9 off Florida's Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm with 120 mph winds. About 50 miles north in St. Petersburg, winds from the hurricane tore the paneling off the roof of Tropicana Field, where the Rays have played since their first season in 1998. Video of the Trop's roof being blown apart went viral that night, and the following morning, photos of the coverless stadium became the lasting images of the storm's aftermath.
Today, the Rays play the Colorado Rockies on Opening Day of the 2025 season at Steinbrenner Field, across the bay in Tampa. It comes a day after the rest of Major League Baseball played their first game of the season because the league gave the Rays extra time to prepare their temporary home, which for the previous month had been the spring training home of the New York Yankees. The park's new look was shown off to the team Thursday.
The future of the Rays is unclear. Repairing Tropicana Field will cost more than $55 million, and there have been questions over whether that's even worth doing because the team was supposed to move to a new stadium in 2028. But the plans for that $1.3 billion complex have been scrapped after months of back-and-forth between the Rays and local officials over public funding. That could lead to the Trop being restored after all. There are even rumors of MLB forcing owner Stuart Sternberg to sell the team while the team looks for another place to play.
For 2025, at least, the Rays will stay in Tampa under covered-up or taken-down logos of their AL East rivals. Here's a look back at how we got here:
October 9 | Hurricane Milton blows off Tropicana Field roof
Hurricane Milton devastated a large part of Florida, with the eye making landfall south of Sarasota about 8:30 p.m. Oct. 9 before the Category 3 storm made its way across the state, bringing tornadoes as far away as the Atlantic Coast. At least 25 people died, and millions were left without power.
The lasting image of the damage was the roof being ripped off Tropicana Field. The stadium was built in 1990, and while the Teflon-coated fiberglass was designed to withstand winds up to 115 mph, the material hadn't been upgraded since the dome was built. The Trop was used as a base camp for emergency crews ahead of the storm, but no injuries were reported when the roof came off. It wasn't the only stadium to get pounded: Video from inside Raymond James Stadium showed floodwaters pouring into the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
October 10 | Parts of Tropicana Field roof appear on eBay
As cleanup began in St. Petersburg, some enterprising individuals grabbed pieces of the shredded roof (among other parts of the stadium) and put them on auction sites including eBay.
October 18 | Report indicates Tropicana Field won't be playable in 2025
The Tampa Bay Times reported that because of safety concerns, including not just the playing field but also offices inside the complex, Tropicana Field likely would not be playable for the 2025 season. The Rays were scheduled to open the season March 27.
October 20 | Rob Manfred says he wants Rays to stay in Tampa Bay
On an episode of "The Varsity" podcast, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said if Tropicana Field can't be fixed in time for Opening Day, he wants the team to remain in the Tampa/St. Pete area if possible. "We're hopeful that we can figure out something in (the Tampa Bay area) for them and that the repairs can be done in a way that allows them to resume playing," Manfred said. "The easiest thing is always to stay in the market where the clubs are anchored, if we can manage it." He also said he wanted a decision to be made for the 2025 season by Christmas.
October 31 | City Council approves initial Tropicana Field repairs
In the council's first meeting since the hurricane, St. Petersburg leaders approved $6.5 million to clean and repair the Trop.
November 8 | City Council requests report on Tropicana Field damage
A week after approving an initial cleanup package, St. Pete leaders formally asked for an official estimate on the extent of damage done to the stadium. A report from WTSP said officials estimated $75 million of total damage from Hurricane Milton, with the Trop accounting for nearly $50 million.
November 12 | Damage report confirms Rays won't play at Tropicana Field in 2025
First reported by The Tampa Bay Times, the report submitted to St. Pete City Council showed $39 million in damage was done to Tropicana Field, with $23.6 million coming from the destroyed roof. The stadium would cost about $55 million to fix, and while the fixes could be made in time for the 2026 season, the upcoming baseball season would have to be played elsewhere.
November 14 | Rays announce they'll play at Steinbrenner Field in 2025
Rays owner Stuart Sternberg said in a news release the team would make its temporary home Steinbrenner Field, the 11,206-seat spring training home of the New York Yankees across the street from the Buccaneers' stadium in Tampa. MLB said it would take down or cover up Yankees signage as best it could on the field, on the concourse and in the clubhouse to make it feel more like home for the Rays.
March 23 | Yankees play last spring training game at Steinbrenner Field
The Rays and Yankees played to a 3-3 tie Sunday, ending New York's preseason schedule at its spring home. This let Rays staff take over the complex and start converting the stadium into the Rays' home for the next six months.
March 28 | Rays play Rockies on Opening Day 2025
Ryan Pepiot gets the start for Tampa Bay against Colorado's Kyle Freeland at 4:05 p.m. ET for the final season opener on the 2025 MLB calendar.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Tampa Bay Rays stadium timeline from hurricane to Steinbrenner Field
Continue reading...
