Tampa Bay Rays find a new temporary home

The Tampa Bay Rays will play at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa for the 2025 season after being forced to relocate when Tropicana Field was severely damaged during Hurricane Milton.

The stadium, which is on North Dale Mabry Highway across from Raymond James Stadium, is the spring training home of the New York Yankees and sits about 11,000 people.

The Yankees, according to a statement from the Rays, will continue to play there next spring as the Rays train in Port Charlotte, per usual.

The move will happen when spring training breaks.

The Rays were forced to find a new place to play next season after Milton tore off large chunks of the stadium’s roof last month, also causing major damage to the interior of the building.

According to a recent report to the city of St. Petersburg, the repairs are estimated to cost $55.7 million. But the work would not be completed until well after the 2025 baseball season starts in March.

The city, which is the landlord, is responsible for the repairs. FEMA and insurance money are likely to defray the costs.

The team, in a statement, says Steinbrenner Field was the best-prepared stadium in the region to host regular-season games and is already undergoing renovations to improve its clubhouse and playing facilities. That project includes upgraded field lighting, expanded home locker rooms and improved training and rehabilitation capabilities.

Additional improvements are expected to be made before the regular season.

The team did not discuss financial terms, nor did it say what would happen to Yankees’ branding currently covering much of Steinbrenner Field.

The need to play somewhere other than Tropicana Field came just about three months after the team, St. Petersburg and Pinellas County came to an agreement for the funding of a new $1.2 billion ballpark.

According to plans, construction will begin on the new stadium early next year and will open in time for the start of the 2028 baseball season.