Tampa Bay Rays Sale Approved
In a unanimous decision, Major League Baseball owners have given the green light to the sale of the Tampa Bay Rays. The deal, led by real estate developer Patrick Zalupski, will allow the transfer of the team from Stu Sternberg’s group. The official announcement of the sale was made on September 17, with the expectation of closing the deal within two weeks. Sternberg took control of the team in November 2005, renaming the team the Rays instead of Devil Rays after the 2007 season. During his tenure, the Rays achieved significant successes, including American League East Division titles in 2008, 2010, 2020, and 2021. In addition, they reached the World Series twice, losing to Philadelphia in 2008 and to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020. In March, the Rays withdrew from a $1.3 billion project to build a new stadium near Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, due to a hurricane and delays that likely increased costs. In June, the team began talks about a possible sale. Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Milton to Tropicana Field last October, the Rays played their home games this season at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, the Yankees’ training field. The team had a home record of 41-40, extending their streak of winning seasons to nine.While playing in an outdoor stadium for the first time, the Rays experienced 17 rain delays in 16 games, totaling 17 hours and 47 minutes.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred has expressed his expectation that, under Zalupski’s direction, the Rays will begin a new search for a location for a new stadium in the Tampa and St. Petersburg area. The Rays began this season with a payroll of $81.9 million, surpassing only the Athletics and Miami. Playing in a stadium with a capacity of 10,046 spectators, Tampa Bay had 61 full houses and attracted 786,750 fans, a decrease from the 1,337,739 in 2024, ranking 28th out of 30 teams, only above Miami and Oakland.Currently, Tampa Bay ranks 29th in home attendance this year, only surpassing the Athletics, who are playing their home games in a minor league stadium in West Sacramento, California, while a new stadium is being built in Las Vegas, scheduled to open in 2028. The Rays have completed their home game schedule, while the A’s have attracted 711,609 spectators with six home games remaining.
