While the stadium is fixable, it can’t be done in time for the 2025 MLB season, and it comes with a $55 million price tag.
Hurricane Milton continues to have a lasting impact in St. Petersburg, as decisions surrounding the wind-damaged home of the Tampa Bay Rays not only impacts the 2025 season, but well beyond.
A new 412-page report released by the City of St. Petersburg details the viability and repairability of Tropicana Field, home of the Rays since 1998. While the stadium is fixable, it can’t be done in time for the 2025 MLB season, and it comes with a $55 million price tag. With plans already in place to demolish the venue when the Rays debut a planned $1.3 billion stadium for the 2028 season, that makes decisions about the future of stadiums in the area murkier. Add in new pressing municipal needs due to hurricane damage, and now the availability of the government-based funding for the new ballpark is in question.
The powerful winds from Milton ripped apart the fabric roof on the stadium on Oct. 10, opening the non-weatherproofed venue to the rains that came with the storm. According to the report prepared by Hennessy Construction Services, “the primary structure is serviceable and capable of supporting a replacement tension membrane fabric roof,” which may complicate matters further.
