Tampa Bay Rays Need To Make Up Their Mind About Stadium Location Says Commissioner Manfred

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said the Tampa Bay Rays have to make a stadium decision soon.

The team has played at the Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg since its inaugural season in 1998. The lease at the Trop expires in 2027.

“Obviously the end of that lease is a hard deadline, but you need to take into account that stadiums take a little bit of time to build, right,” Manfred said at Thursday's news conference, Associated Press reported. “So we are getting to the point where wherever it is in the region that has an interest in having 162 baseball games, they need to get to it, get with the club-I know the Rays are anxious to get something done — and see if a deal can be made.”

MLB rejected plans for the Rays to split the season in Montreal and St. Pete in early 2021. Their focus has been on Tampa and Ybor City since then. Manfred said he wants to move the team to Tampa.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor supports their move across the bay. In March, Castor told the Tampa Bay Times that they need to get moving on this. She thinks Ybor City is the best place for the Rays, according to the outlet.

In 2020, former St. Pete mayor Rick Kriseman reviewed Tropicana redevelopment plans submitted by developers. They had to include building plans with and without the stadium for preparation if the Rays stay or go.

Kriseman chose Midtown Development as the city's partner in December. Affordable housing units and retail buildings are some developments the builder wants to supply.

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch took office in January. He isn't 100 percent considering Midtown as Kriseman did. Welch also favors a development plan by a San Francisco architect group, JMA Ventures, that submitted a proposal to the city in 2020, the Times reported.

Welch said in a June 2 interview with the Times that it was hard to choose between the two without the Rays telling him if they were staying in St. Pete or going.

Welch said to the newspaper, he will tell the city which developer he has selected on June 30 in hopes at the same time the Rays reveal their future stadium plans.

He said he's been having productive conversations with the Rays about their future home.

Related Patch Stories

• MLB Rejects Rays Split Season Plan With Montreal: Report
• Mayor's Trop Redevelopment Pick Has Affordable Housing Commitment