Yesterday it was the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin’s turn to have a go at “What will the Rays do for a stadium now that Tropicana Field’s roof was ripped off by Hurricane Milton?”, and here one would think that Topkin’s famed tightness with Rays management could actually provide some valuable insights. Unfortunately, either Rays officials aren’t talking or don’t know themselves what the future holds, because what we get from Topkin is a whole lot more speculation and conjecture — but let’s see if there’s any actual information hiding in the weeds of his article:
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.
This is the line that is getting attention, as other news outlets have started citing it as confirmation that the roof repair definitely can’t be done by opening day. And maybe it can’t, but as a longtime professional journalist and editor myself, I am obligated to inform you that when someone sneaks in that word “seems,” it’s a giveaway that they want to say something without actually having proof. If Topkin knew for sure that the Rays won’t be able to play at the Trop on March 27, he would have written “the only thing that is certain,” but he did not.
Is Topkin hearing from informed sources that the roof can’t be repaired in time for opening day? Is he just hearing it from scuttlebutt and rumor? Is he just looking at the shredded roof and going, “Yeah, that looks bad”? Could be any of the above.
There are indications of extensive damage elsewhere at the stadium. For example, some team offices on the fourth floor, which had drop ceilings under the overall roof, are now open to the elements.
This is a good point and useful information, but also doesn’t really indicate much about when or whether the Rays will be able to return to the stadium, since it’s not like team offices have to reopen in order for the team to play games there.
In a brief memo to staff last week, team leadership acknowledged there were “more questions than answers.” An update to employees is planned this week.
Tl;dr: Rays officials dunno either.
The Rays have to get a sense on whether they are looking for a temporary home for a few months, for a full season or for all three years. Plus, Major League Baseball will have a say, and the players union is sure to be involved.
Well, yeah. Both MLB and the MLBPA have to sign off on any temporary home for the Rays, which will involve looking at both playing conditions and working conditions for the players, such as clubhouse facilities, weight rooms, etc. The union is already engaged in discussions with the league over the A’s temporary move to a minor-league stadium in Sacramento for the next three years; MLBPA officials have been tight-lipped about what they’re demanding in order to give their signoff, so we can probably expect similar regarding the Rays situation. (It’s also possible the league owners could try to override the union by invoking a “force majeure” clause to declare this an emergency situation, but that’s a ways down the road yet.)
There will be a lengthy list of options, maybe 50 locations long, with some more suitable based on length of stay. And all come with concerns such as weather, location, facilities and/or scheduling conflicts based on the primary tenant.
Yup. Among the options suggested by Topkin:
- St. Petersburg’s Al Lang Stadium, Clearwater’s BayCare Ballpark, Dunedin’s TD Ballpark, and Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field: Al Lang would need to be reconverted from soccer and tends to flood, while the other three all host minor-league teams that would complicate scheduling.
- Port Charlotte, the Rays’ spring training stadium: Less than 7,00o capacity, nearly 100 miles away from their Tampa Bay fan base, and would likely need housing for players and staff.
- Orlando’s The Stadium at the ESPN Wide World of Sports: Holds either 7,500 or 9,500 fans, depending on which source you trust, and has hosted MLB games on occasion before, but also has a packed schedule.
- Miami’s LoanDepot Park:
Not being used for much during baseball season since the Miami Marlins moved out, [NOTE: Sorry, read quickly and conflated the two corporate-named Miami stadiums; while others have suggested the Dolphins‘ Hard Rock Stadium as an option, Topkin didn’t mention that one.] Has a large capacity and has MLB-ready facilities, but is also all the way across the state and could cause scheduling conflicts with the Marlins.
- Durham, Nashville, Charlotte, San Juan, Montreal, Omaha: Now you’re just naming cities.
Topkin doesn’t mention it, but since we’re spitballing: Splitting games between, say, Orlando and Miami, or two of the minor-league ballparks, seems like one reasonable option. Though it would be a nightmare for Rays fans, not to mention for Rays ticket sales — I can only imagine the conversations team sales agents are having right now with season ticket holders about what city and/or state their tickets will be good for next year.
Back to assessing the damage:
There is more damage to the stadium that opened in 1990 without a primary tenant.
Engineering experts are expected on the property within the next week to get a better sense of the overall structural integrity (such as whether the roof struts are in danger of falling), the condition of the large video board and other features that were not designed to be exposed to elements, and other damage throughout the building, such as the exposed offices.
So there’s more damage than just the roof being ripped off, but we won’t know for a week or so how serious it is. That’s fine and fair reporting, but still doesn’t tell us much other than that if you’re going to replace the roof, you need to have viable struts to attach it to.
The city of St. Petersburg is responsible and has insurance to cover the costs.
We can dispense with “Why replace the roof on a stadium that’s about to be torn down?” at least: Because insurance will cover it.
A related issue is whether the overall damage throughout the Tampa Bay area leads to a delay in the timetable for the new stadium, which was to have its groundbreaking in January.
And will there be any revision in the glass-heavy design? Should it be fortified against higher than the Category 4 winds officials say it can withstand?
And what will the new stadium’s roof be made of? It sure looks translucent, which could be either glass or fabric, but I still haven’t been able to find any documentation on what material it will be or what force winds it would be rated for. (Topkin or one of the other two contributors to this article could have called Populous, the stadium architects, to ask, but apparently didn’t.)
So, not much more information here than we had before, other than that Rays officials seem very concerned about having a place to play come March, which one would hope they would be. More news in a week or so, maybe, once engineers have gotten a good look at those struts.