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Tampa Bay Rays Issue Statement in Wake of Hurricane Milton, Devastation to Tropicana Field

Hurricane Milton caused tremendous damage to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg on Wednesday night into Thursday. The Rays have issued a statement.

Brady Farkas

A detail view of a Tampa Bay Rays hat and glove at Tropicana Field on Sept 6, 2019.
A detail view of a Tampa Bay Rays hat and glove at Tropicana Field on Sept 6, 2019. / Kim Klement-Imagn Images
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On Wednesday night, and again on Thursday morning, we posted scary pictures and videos of the situation unfolding at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.

During Hurricane Milton, the roof of Tropicana Field was blown clear off. The building has been open since 1990 but the Tampa Bay Rays have played there since the inaugural season for the franchise in 1998.

On Thursday afternoon, the Rays posted a statement on social media:

"During the past couple weeks, our beloved city, region and state have been impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We are devastated by the damage incurred by so many. Our priority is supporting our community and our staff. We are fortunate and grateful that no one was hurt by the damage to our ballpark last night. Over the coming days and weeks, we expect to be able to assess the true condition of Tropicana Field. In the meantime, we are working with law enforcement to secure the building.

"We ask for your patience at this time, and we encourage those who can to donate to organizations in our community that are assisting those directly impacted by these storms."

The Rays have been looking to get a new ballpark for years and have finally gotten approval for one. They are scheduled to begin play at a new facility in 2028, but will still need to fix Tropicana Field in time for play in 2025 and beyond.

The following from Pinellas County leadership appeared on CNN.com:

“I mean, the pictures of Tropicana Field … without a roof is beyond belief,” Scott told CNN, referring to the severely damaged Tampa Bay Rays’ baseball stadium.

“I’ve never — I’ve lived in Pinellas County for 42 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” (Pinellas County Commissioner Brian) Scott said. “I mean, to get a one-two-punch like that from first, Helene — we got, basically, all of the bad things.”

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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