Despite having one of baseball’s most consistent sides over the past decade or so, viewership remains a point of concern for the Rays.
Tampa Bay has long struggled to sell out its aging home ground, Tropicana Field, posting some of MLB’s worst attendance figures in recent seasons.
In 2024, ownership vowed to erect a colosseum fit for the organization’s impressive on-field performance. The pitch, slated to be located in the heart of Tampa’s Historic Gas Plant District, spawned plenty of praise across the baseball world.
However, recent developments have indicated that the Rays’ revelation was a bit premature.
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With that, here’s what you need to know about the breakdown in Tampa Bay’s stadium deal.
Rays new stadium, explained
The Rays announced their intention to open up a sparkling $1.3 billion colossus in St. Petersburg last October, sparking delight among masses of Tampa Bay supporters. The decision proved especially notable when Tropicana Field sustained extensive damage during Hurricane Milton.
Local government agencies approved the sale of bonds to pay for their share of stadium funding. However, negotiations hit a snag ahead of the team’s March 31 deadline to meet specific conditions to collect public financing. The Rays were tasked with showing evidence that they could meet their minimum $700 million obligation towards the project—not including any cost overruns.
Financing delays—which reportedly would cost the Rays millions—appear to have led ownership to pull the plug.
“After careful deliberation, we have concluded we cannot move forward with the new ballpark and development project at this moment,” Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg said in a statement posted to X on Thursday. “A series of events beginning in October that no one could have anticipated led to this difficult decision.”
Sternberg, a Wall Street investor, has a net worth of $800 million, per Celebrity Net Worth. He revealed that the City of St. Petersburg is making plans to restore Tropicana Field for the 2026 season.
In 2024, the Rays had the third-lowest home attendance, averaging 16.515 spectators per game across 81 contests.
Where are the Rays playing in 2025?
The Rays were initially slated to play their games in Tropicana Field—their home since their inaugural 1998 season.
Hurricane Milton changed that equation. In October, the Category 5 tropical cyclone swept through the Gulf Coast. Tropicana Field was rendered unplayable after the storm tore through the stadium’s roof.
Instead, the Rays will play their 2025 home matches at George M. Steinbrenner Field, the Yankees’ spring training site in Tampa. The ground, located across the Dale Mary Highway from the Buccaneers’ Raymond James Stadium, seats 11,026 people—the biggest total among any spring training ballpark in Florida.
When will Tropicana Field be ready?
Sternberg announced that the City of St. Petersburg is “currently advancing plans” to restore Tropicana Field in time for the 2026 season. Assuming those plans come to fruition, fans can expect to see the Rays back in the Trop by 2026.
It’s worth noting that, at present, the final year of the Rays’ lease is 2027, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Are the Rays moving?
According to The Athletic’s Evan Drellich, Sternberg is facing pressure from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and other owners to sell the Rays. Theoretically, that could open the door for relocation, especially if another robber-baron was willing to foot the bill.
But MLB has a series of cities on its radar for potential expansion franchises. Drellich reported that the league doesn’t want the Rays to move out of their market. It’s also not up to Sternberg whether the team jumps ship. That decision lies at the hands of MLB and its gang of other owners.
With St. Petersburg effectively off the table, nearby Hillsborough County could be another option for Sternberg and Co. The district hasn’t been too amenable to stadium efforts in the past, although it did renew a half-cent sales tax in November—granted, that money is expected to go to the Buccaneers as they approach the end of their lease at Raymond James Stadium in 2028.
Nevertheless, there’s plenty of uncertainty over the future of baseball in Tampa Bay. Sternberg did little to assuage those concerns with his latest announcement.
