The Tampa Bay Rays have formally informed the city of St. Petersburg that they are backing a $55.7-million plan for Tropicana Field repairs, after massive damage caused by Hurricane Milton, in time for the 2026 MLB season.
The October 9 hurricane caused plenty of physical damage to the Tampa Bay region. At Tropicana Field, it tore apart most of the fabric roof while also causing water damage to the interior of the ballpark. With it physically impossible for the Rays to play the 2025 season at the Trop, it forced a move to Steinbrenner Field, spring-training home of the New York Yankees.
The hurricane also caused a serious reevaluation of the team’s future ballpark plans–i.e., a $6.5-billion redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant District, with a new $1.3-billion Rays ballpark the centerpiece. The Historic Gas Plant District sits adjacent to the Tropicana Field site, so the new ballpark would be built adjacent to the existing Trop. The Rays and Hines would lead the development, with the Rays promising $700 million toward the new ballpark, with Pinellas County issuing $312.5 million in bonds and St. Petersburg issuing $287.5 million in bonds. (That deal is still current, but the team has until March 31 to meet benchmarks; if missed, the development automatically terminates.)
All sides apparently have made up: Pinellas County officials were peeved that the Rays are playing the 2025 season in Hillsborough County and not Pinellas County venues like BayCare Ballpark (Phillies spring home) or TD Ballpark (Blue Jays spring home). The thought of spending tens of millions on repairs to a ballpark that will be torn down in four or so years also rankled city and county officials. And the Rays were looking to potentially leave the market altogether, open to a buyout of the Tropicana Field lease and bypassing any repairs. But in a letter to St. Petersburg City Administrator Rob Gerdes, Rays President Matt Silverman expressed openness to the repairs being completed for the beginning of the 2026 season.
But, as city officials have said, this could be a challenge, and the possibility of a partial season at the Trop has been floated by city officials. That would be not meet the current Tropicana Field use agreement, however. To that end, the team want to go ahead with an immediate repair plan, to be monitored by MLB: “It is therefore critical that the rebuild start in earnest as soon as possible, that a realistic completion schedule be developed quickly and that the City diligently pursue the reconstruction as required by the Use Agreement,” Silverman wrote.
It will be interesting, to be sure, how the city responds.
Screencap of Tropicana Field damage courtesy City of St. Petersburg.
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