Rays Take on a Fresh Challenge at Steinbrenner Field
The Tampa Bay Rays are going on a little adventure next season. They will be playing their 2025 home games at the New York Yankees' nearby Spring Training ballpark, Steinbrenner Field. This change comes due to uncertainty surrounding the hurricane damage sustained by Tropicana Field in Florida when Hurricane Milton passed through earlier in October. The field in Tampa is the best fit for the team and its Florida fan base. It has about 11,000 seats and is one of the largest spring training camps in Florida. Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said that the Rays-Yankees deal is good for the sport in the Tampa area.
The Rays' Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg was hit hard by Hurricane Milton on October 9th. It has been their home field since 1998. The stadium suffered extensive water damage and had its fabric roof shredded by the powerful winds of the hurricane. The City of St. Petersburg released a statement about the cost of repairs, which was estimated at $55.7 million. If the repairs are made, the stadium could be ready for the start of the 2026 season.
All the work that needs to be done would require approval from the city council. However, earlier this year, a vote was passed for a new $1.3 billion, 30,000-seat stadium. It will be much larger than the current one. The new stadium will be part of the Historic Gas Plant District project, named after the Black community that once occupied the 86-acre site. The development will also include retail stores, hotels, office spaces, and other historical features.
Despite all the uncertainty, the Rays know one thing, and that is that they will be playing in a much smaller outdoor park operated by one of their main rivals, the New York Yankees. There are a few conditions for this deal. For each game hosted by the Rays, the Yankees will receive around $15 million in revenue for hosting the Rays. They are one of the bigger teams in the league, and they know how to negotiate. For the rest of the season, while the Rays are using this stadium, one of the Yankees' minor league teams, the Tampa Tarpons, will be playing elsewhere, as this is technically their home field.
The small ballpark mimics the larger stadium with retired Yankees numbers. There are also some weather challenges the Rays may have to deal with, such as hot days, rainy days, and other Florida weather they have dealt with for years. The Rays usually get a decent number of fans who attend their games. In 2024, they recorded around 16,500 fans per game.
It will be different this year, but at least they will still have the chance to play. It's not the first time a big league team has hosted games in a Spring Training stadium. The Toronto Blue Jays played their 2021 season at their facility in Dunedin due to Canadian government restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Yankees have been more than happy to step in and help out the Tampa Bay Rays for this upcoming season.
