Winds of change
Hurricane Milton tore apart Tropicana Field and the Tampa Bay Rays' plans for a new ballpark and entertainment district. Now what happens?
TOP OF THE FIRST
I am so old I can remember when Stu Sternberg was considered an ideal owner
In October 2005, Goldman Sachs alumni Stu Sternberg and Matthew Silverman took over ownership of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, perhaps the most woeful franchise in MLB.
The franchise began playing in 1998. The team saw little success on or off the field through eight seasons. Tampa Bay lost at least 90 games each year. After the novelty wore off, attendance was sparse.
They bought the team from Vince Naimoli. On Naimoli’s watch, the St. Petersburg High School band was invited to play the national anthem and was asked to pay for admission. The incident was blamed on miscommunication, but it exemplified the disorganized and tight-fisted ways of the club in its early years.
Sternberg and Silverman — with Sternberg as the point man/CEO and Silverman as president — wanted to apply “Wall Street ways” to their franchise, Jonah Keri wrote in his book “The Extra 2%: How Wall Street Strategies Took a Major League Baseball Team from Worst to First.” They hired another Wall Street veteran, Andrew Friedman, to run the baseball operations.
By 2008, the team won its first American League pennant. Since 2007, the Rays have been to the playoffs nine times and twice won AL pennants despite playing in the AL East, consistently one of baseball’s strongest divisions.
Quite a turnaround.
Oddly enough, Wall Street ways did more on the field than on the business side. The team has not drawn 2 million fans since its first season when the Devil Rays attracted 2.5 million.
Forbes estimated the Rays’ revenue in 2023 at $301 million, 27th out of 30 among MLB teams.
The Rays’ problems at the gate have been blamed on Tropicana Field. The team and local government officials came up with a plan for a new stadium and entertainment district. That was nixed (details in HEART OF THE ORDER below).
Now MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and local movers and shakers want Sternberg to sell.
As Ray Ratto wrote in The Defector: “Protocol demands that Manfred stand in front of Sternberg to catch whatever arrows come back his way, unless ...
... Unless, that is, more powerful owners than Sternberg have decided he is screwing up relations with the politicals of a town/market that they want to keep close to their collective be-suited bosom. In that case, and we would posit in that case alone, Manfred would be fulfilling his broader mandate as the sport's butler without portfolio by publicly turning on one of his many demanding bosses.”
Money Inc. estimates there are 18 billionaires among the MLB owners, and Sternberg is worth a mere $800 million. In this club, he’s a charity case, figuratively and, because of revenue sharing and the payroll tax, literally.
So the message is clear: Thanks for keeping the Tampa Bay market viable, Stu. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
HEART OF THE ORDER
MLB’s Florida fiasco
Here’s a primer on the wild and wacky happenings with the Rays franchise.
The Tampa Bay Rays have found themselves in a precarious position after walking away from a $1.3 billion stadium deal that would have secured their future in St. Petersburg. This sudden reversal created uncertainty around the franchise. Multiple ownership groups expressed interest in buying the team. Let's break down the situation to understand what's happening and what might come next.
Who will occupy the owner’s suite?
Rays owner Stuart Sternberg faces mounting pressure from MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and various local officials to sell the team.
Since the stadium deal fell apart, at least four interested parties have stepped forward claiming they have the financial means to purchase the franchise, which Forbes values at approximately $1.25 billion.
Joe Molloy, a former New York Yankees partner, Tampa Bay educator, and CEO of JAM Sports Ventures, leads one group. Molloy claims his group consists mostly of local investors, with a couple from the Orlando area, all operating under non-disclosure agreements. There have been reports linking the DeBartolo family to Molloy's effort, though Eddie DeBartolo Jr. (former San Francisco 49ers owner) declined to comment on such reports, and his half-brother Ed Kobel (president of DeBartolo Development) has been noncommittal.
Another notable contender is the Orlando Dreamers group, now led by Hall of Famer Barry Larkin. This group recently announced they've identified an anchor investor for a control ownership group and have a letter of intent for financing a proposed state-of-the-art, 45,000-capacity domed stadium in Orlando's tourist corridor. The Dreamers' co-founder Jim Schnorf claims their financing structure would provide approximately $1 billion toward stadium construction costs.
And Tampa lawyer Carter McCain says he represents a group of interested buyers; most of his unnamed backers are from out of state.
Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan has mentioned that there are "three different local groups" interested in buying the team, and after conversations with Commissioner Manfred, he expressed confidence that "the team is going to remain in Tampa Bay" even under new ownership.
Why did the Rays pull out of the deal for a new stadium and entertainment district?
The Rays officially announced on March 13 that they were backing out of the $1.3 billion stadium deal in St. Petersburg, weeks before a March 31 deadline to meet certain requirements to move the project forward. In a social media statement, owner Stuart Sternberg cited "a series of events beginning in October that no one could have anticipated" as leading to this "difficult decision."
The unexpected event was Hurricane Milton, which tore the roof off Tropicana Field in October 2024, making it unplayable for the 2025 season. This natural disaster caused a delay in the county's vote to approve funding for the new stadium project. The Rays contend that this delay would have pushed the opening of the new ballpark back by a year (from 2028 to 2029) and created associated cost overruns that would have been their responsibility.
These additional costs were estimated to add between 2% and 12% to construction expenses due to inflation, insurance increases, and potential economic policy changes from the new presidential administration. However, county commissioners pushed back on this justification, with Commissioner Kathleen Peters noting that they still had until March 31 to approve funding.
Beyond the financial concerns, the relationship between the Rays and local officials had grown increasingly adversarial. The team reportedly felt the partnership wasn't strong enough to tackle the inevitable issues that would arise during development. As Rays co-president Matt Silverman told The Athletic, "It's not a question of whether we have the funds. We do. The question is whether it's a good use of those funds to commit us and MLB to this ballpark for the next 30 years."
What was the new stadium and entertainment district going to be like?
The now-abandoned stadium project was approved in July 2024 and would have created a state-of-the-art 30,000-seat facility in St. Petersburg, essentially on the other side of the Tropicana Field parking lot. The Rays would have contributed $700 million toward the $1.3 billion cost, with public funding covering the remaining $600 million.
The new ballpark was set to be the centerpiece of a massive $6.5 billion redevelopment project on the 86-acre site of Tropicana Field, known as the Historic Gas Plant District. This ambitious plan included extensive commercial and residential space around the ballpark, essentially creating an entirely new neighborhood and entertainment district.
The project would have revitalized an important area of St. Petersburg and potentially solved the long-standing attendance issues plaguing the Rays. The team has been seeking a new stadium for more than a decade, as Tropicana Field has consistently drawn poor attendance despite the team's on-field success.
St. Petersburg Mayor Kenneth Welch has said that the city will still move forward with the development of the Historic Gas Plant District, even without the Rays' involvement. One hour after the Rays' announcement, local private equity firm Blake Investment Partners offered to purchase the Historic Gas Plant District for $260 million, demonstrating continued interest in the area's potential.
What are the challenges with Tropicana Field?
Tropicana Field, the Rays' home since their inaugural 1998 season, has long been considered one of the least appealing venues in Major League Baseball. The stadium, which first opened in 1990, is now MLB's seventh-oldest stadium and has been blamed for the team's consistently poor attendance.
Hurricane Milton severely damaged the facility in October 2024, tearing off its roof and forcing the team to find an alternative venue for the 2025 season. The City of St. Petersburg is currently advancing plans to restore Tropicana Field for the 2026 season, though there's concern that renovations might not be completed in time for Opening Day next year.
The roof installation is tentatively scheduled for December, but a tight timeline and funding issues have complicated matters. Voting on funding to purchase a new roof isn't scheduled for a couple of weeks, and the delay in deciding how to proceed could make completing repairs by next season very difficult.
Some fans have suggested simply renovating the existing facility rather than building an entirely new stadium. As Rays fan Chris Schriber put it, "Spend the money, renovate and upgrade the roof. Make it nice and spend the money." Interestingly, Rays co-president Brian Auld reportedly told Commissioner Peters that they have renderings for a renovated Tropicana Field that could be more suitable for long-term use.
What are the challenges of Steinbrenner Field in Tampa?
With Tropicana Field unavailable, the Rays have arranged to play their 2025 home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, the spring training home of the New York Yankees. However, this solution comes with significant challenges that make it unsuitable as anything more than a temporary fix.
Steinbrenner Field is fundamentally a minor-league facility with limited capacity compared to a major-league ballpark. More critically, it lacks a roof, meaning the Rays will have to contend with Florida's notorious summer rain and humidity throughout the season. This could lead to numerous rain delays or postponements, creating scheduling nightmares and potentially affecting team performance.
Yankees chairman Hal Steinbrenner has already made it clear that this arrangement is strictly a one-year solution, not a long-term answer. This puts additional pressure on the Rays to either complete the Tropicana Field renovations by 2026 or find another alternative.
The location in Tampa rather than St. Petersburg also creates challenges for the team's established fan base. While the Tampa Bay region as a whole is the Rays' market, the shift from one side of the bay to the other could impact attendance patterns and fan engagement during this transitional season.
Would Orlando be a better home for MLB?
The Orlando Dreamers group's emergence as potential buyers for the Rays has reignited the debate about whether Orlando might be a better long-term home for Major League Baseball in Central Florida. Orlando previously attempted to bring an MLB team to the city in the 1990s, when the "Orlando Rays" failed in their expansion bid, losing out to Miami and Tampa.
The Dreamers have put together an ambitious proposal, including plans for a "state-of-the-art, 45,000 capacity domed stadium right in the middle of the tourist corridor." This location would potentially tap into Orlando's massive tourism industry, with Jim Schnorf noting they "will welcome approximately 80 million tourists this year." The proposed financing structure would provide around $1 billion toward stadium construction costs under an arrangement described as "highly attractive to Orange County government and citizens, team ownership, and Major League Baseball."
Orlando's tourism infrastructure could potentially address the attendance issues that have plagued the Rays in St. Petersburg. With millions of visitors passing through the area annually, a strategically located stadium could draw not just local fans but also tourists looking for entertainment options during their stay.
However, Major League Baseball has made it clear that their preference is to keep the team in the Tampa Bay region. Their statement following the Rays' stadium announcement emphasized that MLB "remains committed to finding a permanent home for the Club in the Tampa Bay region for their fans and the local community." Commissioner Manfred has promised to "continue to work with elected officials, community leaders, and Rays officials to secure the club's future in the Tampa Bay region."
POSTSCRIPT
Seven unforgettable moments at the Trop that you, well . . . may have forgotten
1. 2008 ALCS Game 7: The Tampa Bay Rays clinched their first-ever World Series berth by defeating the Red Sox 3-1. Akinori Iwamura's game-ending play is unforgettable.
2. Game 162 in 2011: Evan Longoria's walk-off homer in the 12th inning secured the Rays a postseason spot, capping a comeback from a 7-0 deficit against the Yankees.
3. Wade Boggs' 3,000th hit: On Aug. 7, 1999, Wade Boggs, a grad of Tampa’s Plant High School, hit a two-run homer off Cleveland’s Chris Haney to right field. Boggs became the first player in MLB history to join the 3,000-hit club with a home run.
4. Matt Garza’s no-hitter: On July 26, 2010, Garza became the first Ray to throw a no-hitter, beating the Tigers 5-0. He allowed only one base runner, giving up a walk in the second inning to Brennan Boesch. The next batter hit into a double play. So Garza faced the minimum.
5. Don Zimmer Tribute: On June 7, 2014 the Rays honored the legendary coach and baseball icon with a heartfelt ceremony. Zimmer was serving as senior advisor when he passed away on June 4.
6. Carl Crawford's 6-steal game: May 3, 2009, Crawford stole six bases in six attempts against the Red Sox. He tied a major league record held by Eddie Collins, Otis Nixon, and Eric Young Sr. Crawford went 4-for-4 at the plate with an RBI.
7. Edwin Jackson's no-hitter: June 25, 2010, Jackson, a former Ray, threw 149 pitches in a 1-0 win for the Diamondbacks.
BONUS FRAMES
Diamond Baseball Holdings acquires minor League powerhouse Dayton Dragons
In a significant move that further cements its influence across Minor League Baseball, Diamond Baseball Holdings (DBH) has acquired the Dayton Dragons, widely considered the crown jewel of the affiliated minor leagues.
This acquisition comes after four years of aggressive expansion that has seen the Silver Lake-backed company accumulate 42 minor league clubs throughout the country.
The Dayton Dragons aren't just another Single-A team - they represent an unprecedented success story in American professional sports. Since their founding in 2000, the Dragons have sold out every single home game, totaling an remarkable 1,573 consecutive sellouts.
The Dragon’s first home game was played on April 27, 2000. Just to give you an idea of how long ago that was:
Bill Clinton was the president.
Print publications were thriving.
There were nearly 5,000 Blockbuster Video locations in the United States.
Kim Kardashian’s father (Bobby who was a lawyer for OJ Simpson) and stepfather (who was then known as Bruce Jenner) were more famous than she was.
The Patriots took Tom Brady in the sixth round in the NFL draft eleven days earlier. That fall Brady was so far down the Patriots’ depth chart that he didn’t get to travel to road games.
The stock market already had peaked, but the dot.com bubble hadn’t burst. So with an exciting vision, a website, and a little puffery, you could still become a billionaire — on paper . . . at least for a while
In 2024, their average attendance of 8,012 fans per game ranked third among all 120 Minor League Baseball teams, trailing only two Triple-A franchises. Throughout their existence, the Dragons have consistently led all Single-A baseball teams in attendance, demonstrating a business model that transcends the typical limitations of lower-level minor-league operations.
"Their 24-season sellout streak is perhaps the single most impressive statistic in North American sports," DBH executive chair Pat Battle and CEO Peter Freund said in a joint statement.
While financial terms weren't disclosed, the acquisition likely represents a substantial investment. When the previous owners, Palisades Arcadia Baseball, purchased the Dragons in 2014, the approximately $40 million price tag set a minor league record at that time. Recent transactions for Triple-A teams have approached or exceeded $100 million.
College Report: Rice turns to David Pierce in bold midseason move
Rice University has made the unconventional decision to bring former assistant David Pierce back as head coach — effective immediately. The move comes just days after the program parted ways with José Cruz Jr., who was barely a month into his fourth season at the helm.
For Rice baseball fans, this represents both a painful acknowledgment of current struggles and a hopeful nod to the storied past.
Pierce, 62, was part of the coaching staff during Rice's golden era under Wayne Graham, serving nine seasons as an assistant during a period when the Owls reached the College World Series four times and captured the 2003 national championship.
Firing a head coach midseason is rare enough, but installing a replacement who will take over before the weekend series begins is practically unheard of.
This just doesn;t happen in college baseball. O college sports
Pierce won't even get a full practice with his new team before he's in the dugout for Friday's conference opener against Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton.
"Although it is unconventional to bring a new head coach in during the season, as soon as coach Pierce and I came to an agreement that he would be our next head coach, he expressed his strong desire to start immediately," Rice athletic director Tommy McClelland explained in the announcement.
For his part, Pierce seems equally eager to hit the ground running. "I did not want to wait until the end of the season because I believed that we have great potential and a lot of baseball in front of us this year," he said. "I can't wait to get on the field with these players and coaches and prepare for the start of conference play on Friday."
The move represents a full-circle moment for Pierce, a Houston native who began his coaching journey at Rice in 1991 before returning for that successful run from 2003-2011. Since leaving Rice, he's built an impressive résumé, including successful stops as head coach at Sam Houston State and most recently Texas, where he compiled a 297-162 record over eight seasons and guided the Longhorns to three College World Series appearances. Pierce was named Baseball America's 2018 College Coach of the Year during his Texas tenure, which ended with his firing last year. He had been serving as an assistant at Texas State before the Rice opportunity emerged.
For a program that hasn't posted a winning record since 2017 and currently sits at 4-16 this season, Pierce represents a connection to Rice's championship pedigree and proven coaching acumen at the highest levels of college baseball. While the Owls have cycled through four coaches during this difficult stretch, including Cruz who posted a disappointing 63-126 (.333) record over his three-plus seasons, Pierce offers something unique: someone who understands what made Rice baseball special during its heyday.
This abrupt change signals a recognition from the athletic department that extraordinary measures were needed. Recent results have been particularly troubling, with Rice getting outscored 41-10 by Texas A&M, Tennessee, and Mississippi State in the Astros Foundation Classic, suffering an 18-1 drubbing from crosstown rival Houston, and perhaps most painfully, getting swept at home by Yale.
Yes, Yale.
Will Pierce be able to right the ship immediately? Given the current record and the challenges of taking over midstream, that's asking a lot. But for a program desperately seeking to recapture some of its former glory, bringing back someone who helped build that championship culture feels like a step in the right direction.
Good karma, good result
I overheard a Cleveland fan telling a story about Guardians first baseman Micah Pries during an exhibition game on March 19. Pries and another Guardian were playing catch on the field before the game. A throw got away from Pries and went into the stands. It was caught by a father, standing by the rail with his two young sons. The father gave the ball to one boy, and Pries walked over and autographed the ball.
Then Prie got another ball and autographed it for the other boy.
The baseball gods must have seen that and smiled upon him. In the seventh inning, Pries hit a two-run blast, his second homer of the spring.
First, baseball doesn't like to give up. Second, the Tampa area is growing rapidly. 900,000 more people are living in the metro area now than in 2000. The park has been seen as the biggest impediment to drawing fans. It was built on the spec, and it was out of date by the time the Devil Rays started playing. My understanding is it is not in a good location, although the proposed park would be in the same location. Then there is the question of where would MLB move the team? If Tampa were to lose the Rays, Tampa would be the largest metro area without a team except for Southern California's Inland Empire, which the Dodgers, Angels, and even the Padres see as their territory.
I'm having trouble understanding why MLB is so determined to stay in a market that can't fill seats during some great seasons.