Sport can be a powerful force. It can be a driver to make us spend our hard-earned cash, demand hours of our limited time, and make us dart from euphoria to despair and back again in a matter of moments. We can almost be forgiven for forgetting that, as with all things, the power of sport is distantly junior to the power of Mother Nature.
On the 9th of October, Hurricane Milton was the second major storm to pound Florida in a fortnight, causing devastation to the area that will continue to be felt for months and possibly years to come. Whilst the overwhelmingly significant factor here is the impact on the people who live in the area and how they begin to put their lives back together, there’s also a baseball conundrum to solve.
What happened to Tropicana Field?
Some of the most dramatic pictures from the storm were of Tropicana Field’s roof flapping in the not insignificant breeze. The ageing fibreglass roof checked out in dramatic fashion after 34 years of hurricane-strength batterings despite only being designed to last 25.
Can the Rays play there without a roof?
No. Before we even begin to discuss scheduling issues around humidity, thunderstorms and rain-outs (which we will, be patient), we have to consider that water proofing and drainage systems weren’t high on the designer’s priority lists given the building had a roof. As such, the lightest drizzle has the potential to knacker the scoreboard, flood the VIP boxes and turn the plastic field into an alligator-infested wetland.
Can’t they just plonk another roof on?
Absolutely, however, there is some damage to the frame that holds it up, and the manufacturing of the Teflon-coated fibreglass covering is a tricky process. There isn’t sufficient time to get it all done before opening day 2025, and the estimated repair cost is a whopping $55.7 million.
Who picks up the bill?
As is true of a large number of teams, the Rays don’t own the stadium, they are merely the operator. The stadium is owned by the City of St Petersburg and the taxpayers who live there. Whilst the Rays will be responsible for some of the fixtures and fittings, the roof is firmly the responsibility of the city.
They were insured, right?
Well, this is kind of awkward. According to reports by the Tampa Bay Times, (whose offices were severely damaged in the same storm), in March of 2024, the city of St Petersburg chose to reduce the amount the stadium was insured for from $100 million to $25 million (with a $22 million excess). This saved a few bucks on premiums after some fancy modelling predicted any damages wouldn’t exceed $ 39 million.
With the new lid priced at over $55 million dollars, the insurance won’t cover it, and tax payers will be asked to cover costs exceeding the excess. Initially, some consideration was that the city would be unwilling to trigger the insurance because of rate hikes and other such financial skullduggery, but that no longer seems to be a factor.
So they’ll just need a temporary home whilst the roof is fixed?
TBC. This is where it gets really tricky. The Rays and the City of St Petersburg have agreed a deal to construct a new stadium as part of a major redevelopment of the area due to open in 2028. The plan was to construct the stadium whilst the Rays play out their last few years at Tropicana Field, move them to the new stadium and then redevelop the land the Trop is on. As all governments should, there is debate over whether it is worthwhile spending millions of tax-payer dollars on a building that they will tear down two years later. Furthermore, the money they are already spending has some people starting to reconsider the original deal for the new stadium.
The realistic options are:
A – The Rays play away for a year, fix the roof, come back for two years, then move to the new stadium
B – The Rays have played their last game at the Trop (a 4-3 win against the Blue Jays), they spend three years in exile and then move to the new stadium
C – The Rays play away for a year, fix the roof causing the new stadium deal to fall through. They renegotiate a deal to get them back to square one, and they stay at Tropicana Field.
D – See C except they are unable to renegotiate a deal at Tropicana field and end up homeless like the Athletics.
Forgetting all the legacy stuff, where are they going to play in 2025?
George M. Steinbrenner Field, current home of Yankees single-a affiliate the Tampa Tarpons (Yes, Tarpons, with an ‘r’, it’s a fish)
This is a suitable facility and everything’s peachy?
There are some definite pros. Firstly, the Rays can stay in the local area rather than relocating to Miami or further away as some had suggested which is good for their fans. More than that, it’s very close to the ideal location the team were proposing to move to in the 2018 deal that fell through.
Another positive is that it is a good facility. It’s the largest of all of the minor league stadiums in the area with a decent, yet still insufficient, 11,026 capacity and won’t require the sort of renovations the Blue Jays had to contend with when they played in Buffalo or that the A’s are contending with in Sacramento. It’s just across the road from Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Raymond James Stadium, so the roads and parking should be fine.
Great, are there any downsides?
With ups, there are almost always downs. The most glaring issue here is the weather; Tropicana Field had a roof for a reason. Anyone who has visited Florida in the summer can attest to extreme heat combined with mind-boggling humidity, only briefly interrupted by biblical thunderstorms that pass through daily. If you look at the past schedules of minor league teams who play in the area, you will notice a host of doubleheaders, postponements and cancelled games. It is very possible that the Rays will break the record of 21 weather-related interruptions currently held by the 1933 Chicago Cubs.
We also need to consider what happens to the Tampa Tarpons? Will they ground share, exacerbating the rainout issue? Will they become a road team? Will they use another facility? At the time of writing, this issue hasn’t been resolved.
Finally, for Rays players and fans, it’s going to be problematic playing in a stadium adorned with the NY logos and with the name ‘STEINBRENNER’ plastered over the entrance. Tribalism matters in sports, and this one will hurt.
Will Yankees fans give Rays fans endless grief over ‘rescuing’ the ‘poverty’ franchise and having them cower in their spring training stadium?
Yes, yes, they will, very much so.
Article by Rob Noverraz. You can follow Rob on Twitter X at @RobNoverraz. Or better still, you could look like the New Forest Fashionista by purchasing a Bat Flips & Nerds “Welcome to baseball in Roy, Utah” t-shirt.
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