The Tampa Bay Rays are officially on track to have a home again in St. Petersburg, Florida. The bigger question is how long they will stay there.
The St. Petersburg city council voted 7-1 on Thursday to approve $22.5 million for a new Tropicana Field roof after Hurricane Milton shredded the previous one, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The new roof will reportedly be made of the same teflon-coated fiberglass as the old roof.
That step covers roughly half of the estimated $55.7 million that the stadium needs for its full repairs, with additional work required inside.
The city of St. Petersburg was contractually obligated to repair Tropicana Field as part of its landlord agreement with the Rays, who have been open about their intentions to leave the stadium as soon as they find a new home. The team withdrew from a $1.3 billion agreement to build a new stadium in St. Petersburg last month and has been speculated to be ready to move to a new city, with Orlando seen as a possibility.
The Rays are now expected to return to Tropicana Field next season and remain there through 2028. In the meantime, they have begun playing the 2025 season at Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the New York Yankees and the stadium used by the Yankees' Single-A affiliate, the Tampa Tarpons.
The St. Petersburg city council didn't sound particularly enthusiastic about spending eight figures to repair a stadium for three more years of use, but one member indicated that they didn't really have a choice, via the Times:
“I’d much rather be spending that money on hurricane recovery and helping residents in our most affected neighborhoods,” said council member Brandi Gabbard, “but this is our obligation.”
The lone "No" vote on the council, Richie Floyd, said he would've liked to see how expensive a settlement with the Rays would have been, compared to the expense of repairing the stadium.
For the Rays' part, team president Brian Auld said the team is happy with the vote and planning for a return on Opening Day 2026:
“We are pleased to see City Council take this important step toward preparing Tropicana Field for Major League Baseball in time for 2026 ...
