Where will the Tampa Bay Rays play in 2026 and beyond?

The New York Yankees agreed to terms with pitcher Max Fried on an eight-year, $218 million contract Tuesday, their biggest splash since baseball's Winter Meetings began. The price tag, though costly, is a bit easier to swallow thanks to a recent infusion of capital from an unlikely source: the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Rays are leasing the Yankees' spring training site in Tampa next year. The cost: about $15 million, according to the Associated Press. The agreement gives the team a home field for the next year, a necessity after Hurricane Milton damaged Tropicana Field to the tune of about $55.7 million.

Initially, the Tampa Bay Times reported the Rays were told they could move back into Tropicana in time for the 2026 season if repairs were expedited. Since then, however, everything around the Rays' stadium plans has been the opposite of expeditious.

To recap:

• In July, the Rays received final legislative approval for a new stadium project in St. Petersburg.

• In October, the team was effectively rendered homeless by the hurricane. The question of where the Rays would play in 2025 was powerful enough that Pinellas County voted to delay a crucial October vote on a bond measure that would fund the new ballpark project.

• In November, an election shook up the Pinellas County commission, bringing in two new commissioners who were critical of the stadium project as approved. By delaying the vote — and potentially jeopardizing the release of necessary funds — Rays president Matt Silverman told the Wall Street Journal he felt "blindsided."

• The Rays' public criticism of the County drew yet more public criticism in response. In November, County Commissioner Brian Scott called the team "the most politically tone deaf organization" he's ever worked with.

Wow: Pinellas County Commissioner Brian Scott who's still supportive of the stadium deal and would vote for the bonds--is not mincing his words about the Rays and their owner Stu Sternberg for how they've handled the past few weeks. pic.twitter.com/pLl1QOBjLj
— Aaron Parseghian WTSP (@AaronParseghian) November 20, 2024

• Last week the City of St. Petersburg (which owns Tropicana Field) held up its end of the legislative bargain by issuing $287.5 million in bonds for its share of the new stadium costs.

• On Dec. 17, the County commission will vote on whether to approve taking out bonds to finance $312.5 million on its end of the deal.

The last hurdle is a big one to clear on the way to breaking ground on a ballpark. At least the finish line looks closer now than it's appeared in several months.

Even if the bond measure is approved by Pinellas County, three huge questions remain. How soon would the Rays be able to move into a new park? Where will the team play in 2026? And what is the fate of Tropicana Field?

New reporting from the Wall Street Journal's Jared Diamond points to at least a couple answers.

Without a firm plan for Tropicana Field, the question of where the Rays will play in 2026 (to say nothing of 2027 and beyond) remains open-ended. Diamond reports that one possibility could be Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, the site of the College World Series.

Rob Manfred is working to bring a plan to fruition. Baseball's commissioner met last Friday with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Monday, the Times reported Manfred met with Pinellas County chairwoman Kathleen Peters and St. Petersburg mayor Ken Welch.

Manfred's motivation is straightforward. According to the Journal, he believes the Rays should have a permanent plan laid out by 2026 and it’s “only fair” to give the local governments time to try to move forward in light of the hurricane.

The Rays might not be a Yankees tenant in 2026, but there is significant political will to keep them in state as long as possible.

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