Toronto Blue Jays Spring Training Facility Passed Over as 2025 Home of Tampa Bay Rays

After initially thinking that the Jays home in Dunedin could work for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2025, the Rays will play their games at the Yankees' spring training home.

A general view of the stadium before a game between the New York Mets and New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field in 2024. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

On Thursday, it was announced that the Tampa Bay Rays will be playing their 2025 home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the New York Yankees.

The move is necessitated by damage done to Tropicana Field during Hurricane Milton in October. Damage reports came out earlier this week that said the field will not be playable during the 2025 campaign.

This news means that the Toronto Blue Jays' spring training facility in Dunedin, Fla., will not serve as the Rays home ballpark. Dunedin previously served as a temporary home for the Blue Jays in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The ballpark had initially been mentioned as a possible home for the Rays.

The following on the decision comes from a press release that the Rays put out:

Steinbrenner Field was selected as the Rays temporary regular-season home because it is the best-prepared facility in the Tampa Bay region to host regular-season Major League Baseball games. Steinbrenner Field was already undergoing renovations to improve its clubhouse and playing facilities. Recent projects include upgraded field lighting, expanded home locker room space, and improved training and rehabilitation capabilities. It is also the largest spring-training stadium in the region with a capacity of approximately 11,000 patrons. Additional improvements are expected to be made before the regular season to ensure fans continue to have a wonderful experience at Rays games.

Staying close to St. Petersburg, and being in Pinellas County, was of big importance to Major League Baseball in this whole saga. Dunedin is in Pinellas County, but evidently the parties involved felt that the Yankees facility was better suited.

By not having to host the Rays, the Blue Jays will not need to make alterations to their minor league schedule. The Jays Single-A affiliate plays in Dunedin.

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