ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Tropicana Field, the home stadium for Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays, is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day 2025 after suffering damage from Hurricane Milton earlier this month.
The stadium experienced “extensive damage,” including having its roof torn off, as well as ceilings and team offices that are now open to the elements, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Tropicana Field, which opened in 1990, worked with local law enforcement to close access to the stadium due to safety concerns.
Now, with just five months before the Rays’ 2025 home opener on March 27, the team may have to play its home games elsewhere.
“About the only thing that seems certain is that the team won’t be able to open the 2025 Major League Baseball season at home as planned on March 27,” the Times’ Mark Topkin writes.
It remains unclear if the Rays will need a temporary home for a few months, all of next MLB season or longer. The team said it will take the “coming days and weeks” to “assess the true condition of Tropicana Field.”
“Our priority is supporting our community and our staff,” the Rays wrote in a statement Oct. 10. “We are fortunate and grateful that no one was hurt by the damage to our ballpark last night.
“We ask for your patience at this time, and we encourage those who can donate to organizations in our community that are assisting those directly impacted by these storms,” the statement added.
Where the Rays will play in 2025 will be a collective decision between the Rays, MLB and the MLB Players’ Union. Possible options include playing in a nearby minor-league stadium, such as BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, TD Ballpark in Dunedin, and Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg is another possibility, though the stadium – which has hosted the United Soccer League’s Tampa Bay Rowdies since 2011 – would have to be reconverted to a baseball field. However, none of those stadiums have a roof and all would require upgrades to host regular season MLB games, according to the Times.
The Rays, MLB and MLBPA could also consider having the team play its home games at another MLB stadium, such as the Miami Marlins’ home LoanDepot Park, or outside of Florida.
Tropicana Field has hosted the Rays since 1998, the franchise’s first season in MLB. The 1.1-million-square-foot ballpark features a Teflon-coated, fiberglass roof that is supported by 180 miles of cables connected by struts, according to MLB. The tilted roof was built to withstand winds up to 115 mph, well below the 180-plus mph winds recorded during Hurricane Milton, which became one of nine Atlantic hurricanes to ever reach that threshold.
