PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — The plan to build a new $1.3 billion stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays came to a halt on Thursday, after the team’s ownership backed out of the deal.
Owner Stuart Sternberg released a statement saying the organization "cannot move forward with the new ballpark and development project at this moment," and that "a series of events beginning in October that no one could have anticipated led to this difficult decision.”
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on the Rays ownership pulling the plug on the team's new stadium:
One of those events was Hurricane Milton, which severely damaged the Rays home stadium Tropicana Field. The Trop is being repaired, and should be ready for the 2026 season. The storm has forced the team to play the 2025 season home games at the Yankees’ spring training facility, Steinbrenner Field.
The deal for a new team stadium was approved last summer, which included a revitalization of the city’s Historic Gas Plant District, adding commercial and residential space around the proposed ballpark.
The news of the canceled project, which was thought to be a done deal, has added fuel to growing calls for Sternburg to sell the team, some speculating the team could be moved out of Florida.
Major League Baseball released a statement following the move, which said in part, “Major League Baseball remains committed to finding a permanent home for the Club in the Tampa Bay region for their fans and the local community.”
Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan also weighed in, saying after talks with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, he thinks the team will stay put, even if it’s sold to new ownership.
“There are three different local groups that are interested in buying the team,” said Hagan. “Based on my conversations in the past with Commissioner Manfred, I’m confident the team is going to remain in Tampa Bay.”
With the project off the table, St. Petersburg mayor Kenneth Welch, said repairs to the Trop will continue, but any new stadium projects moving forward won’t be done with the Rays’ current ownership.
“I have no interest in working with this ownership group,” Welch told reporters on Thursday. “They’ve got a set of agreements that they signed, July 31 or August 1 of last year, that we all agreed to. Why would I go back to the same group and trust them this time?”
While the stadium issue unfolds off the field, the Rays players are still in spring training at the Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte. Fans at Thursday’s game against the Washington Nations told Fox 4 that the team’s ownership pulling the plug on the deal was disappointing.
“Well it's unfortunate that they couldn't square away a deal that would be beneficial for everybody because Tampa Bay in general is such a big sports town that it would be weird to be without baseball,” said John Watson, a lifelong Rays fan from Sarasota.
Another die hard Rays fan said he hopes the team can just move back into a renovated Tropicana Field.
“Spend the money, renovate and upgrade the roof,” said Chris Schriber. “Make it nice and spend the money.”
Schriber said even if the team is sold, or moves, he would still cheer them on.
“My first ball game was at the Rays stadium at the Trop,” Schriber said. “So, I'd love to see them stay but if they go, they go. I'll still be a Rays fan no matter what.”
