In an introductory press conference that didn’t present many surprises, the new Tampa Bay Rays ownership confirmed a goal for a new ballpark by 2029 and announced short-term improvements to Tropicana Field.
That a new ballpark is in the works wasn’t exactly a secret. Former owner Stu Sternberg worked for years on new ballpark plans across Tampa Bay, and the new Tampa Bay Rays ownership pretty much are taking the same approach, launching new-ballpark efforts across the entire region–and that includes St. Petersburg (more on that later). There was nothing particularly controversial about any part of the press conference, which arguably was the point: though the business side of the MLB franchise will see new life from the new Tampa Bay Rays ownership, but the on-field product–generally a superior one in the last several years–will remain unchanged.
That strategy was confirmed by Patrick Zalupski, the MLB Control Person and Co-Chair of the Rays; Rays Co-Chair Bill Cosgrove; and Ken Babby, the Rays Chief Executive Officer. Of the three, Babby is the one with the most industry experience; readers of this site will know him as owner of the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (Triple-A; International League) and the Akron RubberDucks (Double-A; Eastern League). (The team also released a list of limited partners; a name of note is Andy Sandler of Temerity Baseball, owner of several MiLB teams.)
The Rays are headed back to Tropicana Field for the 2026 season after playing 2025 at Steinbrenner Field while repairs were made to the Trop after Hurricane Milton damage in 2024. The main repair: installation of new roof panels to replace the ones shredded by the hurricane. That will be the most apparent change for 2026, but not the only one: a new videoboard and a new sound system are also on the agenda.
For baseball fans who treasure the ballpark experience, the announcement that the team will be putting some money into Tropicana Field is welcome news. There’s little doubt the Trop is a dated facility and there’s a definite ceiling on the fan experience now, but given that there’s also little doubt the Trop is nothing more now than just a temporary home, any little improvement will help.
“We promise the fan experience will be better than ever—with a new roof, new video board, a new sound system, and other improvements, including some funded directly by the Rays,” Babby said at the press conference. “Tropicana Field is truly going to look better than it ever has, and we are excited to share that with our fans.”
The hot topic for the next year will be a new ballpark, and the new owners plan on meetings with leaders from local municipalities. While the new owners declines to discuss specific locations, their wish list for a ballpark site–100 acres of mixed-use development anchored by a covered ballpark, a la Truist Field in Atlanta (definitely the preferred business model in baseball circles these days, and one personally pushed by MLB Commissioner Ron Manfred as well as Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan)–would seem to be a strong argument for a specific location. We’ve reported several times that we hear the two leading contenders as of now are the Dale Mabry Campus of Hillsborough Community College–basically located south of Steinbrenner Field and west of Raymond James Stadium–and an Ybor City harborside location previously considered by Sternberg. The Hillsborough Community College site, creating an entertainment district that can also cater to fans attending games and concerts at Raymond James Stadium, would definitely seem to check all the boxes. Still, expect plenty of cities and county officials to pitch the Tampa Bay Rays ownership on a slew of potential development spots, including nearby WestShore Plaza, the Florida State Fairgrounds, the former Tampa Greyhound track and more.
“There’s more sites that meet the criteria than you would realize,” Zalupski said at the press conference. “It’s a balance of quality of location with amount of land. We want a great location and as much land as we can get.”
But there will be some calls for the team to stay in St. Petersburg, as a new development plan for the Historic Gas Plant District area surrounding Tropicana Field could accommodate a new Rays ballpark. Under the plan from ARK Investment Management, Ellison Development and Horus Construction, the $6.8-billion development has the potential to house a new ballpark in 2033 in the third phase of the development. The developers don’t seem to have a huge appetite to actually build or run the ballpark: instead, they’d reserve 13-14 acres for the city and the Rays to build a ballpark, and their plans for the Historic Gas Plant District development doesn’t finally depend on a new ballpark. This seems a far cry from the 100-acre master plan visualized by the Tampa Bay Rays ownership group.
The purchase includes USL Championship’s Tampa Bay Rowdies, who currently play out of Al Lang Stadium in downtown St. Petersburg. With St. Petersburg officials convinced the waterfront Al Lang Stadium site is underutilized as a soccer facility and with no future foreseen as a spring-training site, a park anchored by an amphitheater is in the works–which could mean a new home for the Rowdies as well.
Archival rendering of previous proposed Ybor City ballpark courtesy Tampa Bay Rays.
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