City to spend $22.5M to fix hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field roof, aiming for Rays return in 2026
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The once and possibly future home of the Tampa Bay Rays will get a new roof to replace the one shredded by Hurricane Milton with the goal of having the ballpark ready for the 2026 season, city officials decided in a vote Thursday.
The St. Petersburg City Council voted 7-1 to approve $22.5 million to begin the repairs at Tropicana Field, which will start with a membrane roof that must be in place before other work can continue. Although the Rays pulled out of a planned $1.3 billion new stadium deal, the city is still contractually obligated to fix the Trop.
'We are legally bound by an agreement. The agreement requires us to fix the stadium," said council member Lissett Hanewicz, who is an attorney. "We need to go forward with the roof repair so we can do the other repairs.'
The hurricane damage forced the Rays to play home games this season at Steinbrenner Field across the bay in Tampa, the spring training home of the New York Yankees. The Rays went 4-2 on their first homestand ever at an open-air ballpark, which seats around 11,000 fans.
Under the current agreement with the city, the Rays owe three more seasons at the Trop once it's ready again for baseball, through 2028. It's unclear if the Rays will maintain a long-term commitment to the city or look to Tampa or someplace else for a new stadium. Major League Baseball has said keeping the team in the Tampa Bay region is a priority. The Rays had played at the Trop since their inception in 1998.
The team said it would have a statement on the vote later Thursday.
The overall cost of Tropicana Field repairs is estimated at $56 million, said city architect Raul Quintana. After the roof, the work includes fixing the playing surface, ensuring audio and visual electronics are working, installing flooring and drywall, getting concession stands running and other issues.
'This is a very complex project. We feel like we're in a good place," Quintana said at the council meeting Thursday.
Under the proposed timeline, the roof installation will take about 10 months. The unique membrane system is fabricated in Germany and assembled in China, Quintana said, adding that officials are examining how President Donald Trump's new tariffs might affect the cost.
The new roof, he added, will be able to withstand hurricane winds as high as 165 mph (265 kph). Hurricane Milton, one of the strongest hurricanes ever in the Atlantic basin at one point, blasted ashore Oct. 9 south of Tampa Bay with Category 3 winds of about 125 mph (200 kph).
Citing mounting costs, the Rays last month pulled out of a deal with the city and Pinellas County for a new $1.3 billion ballpark to be built near the Trop site. That was part of a broader $6.5 billion project known as the Historic Gas Plant district to bring housing, retail and restaurants, arts and a Black history museum to a once-thriving Black neighborhood razed for the original stadium.
The city council plans to vote on additional Trop repair costs over the next few months.
'This is our contractual obligation. I don't like it more than anybody else. I'd much rather be spending that money on hurricane recovery and helping residents in the most affected neighborhoods," said council member Brandi Gabbard. 'These are the cards that we're dealt.'

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Dodgers' pitching injury woes culminate in a punt. Matt Sauer takes one for the team in 11-1 blowout
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers have 14 pitchers making more than $100 million combined this season on their injured list, They've been signing, promoting, playing and releasing pitchers almost daily as they engage in a perpetual scramble to assemble enough healthy arms to compete. When the Dodgers fell behind in the third inning Tuesday night while desperately short of options on the mound, the defending World Series champions essentially decided to punt a game away to the San Diego Padres. Matt Sauer, a 26-year-old minor leaguer getting his fourth callup already this season, threw 111 pitches while giving up 13 hits, three walks and nine runs and facing 30 batters in the Padres' 11-1 victory . The Dodgers allowed Sauer to pitch 4 2/3 innings with nothing close to his best stuff, and the Padres' loaded lineup feasted on him while turning a much-anticipated rivalry game into a laugher. Utilityman Kiké Hernández then took the mound during the sixth and pitched the final 2 1/3 innings, allowing three hits and one earned run while throwing 36 pitches — none faster than 57 mph. Manager Dave Roberts grimly acknowledged that the Dodgers essentially had to give up on trying to win this game after falling behind 3-0 in the third inning. 'You've just got to look at where our 'pen is at, and appreciate what we have the next couple of days,' Roberts said. 'I felt it just wasn't smart to chase and red-line guys. I've got to give credit to Matt. That was as much as he's ever pitched, and (he) essentially took it for the team to try and stay away from other guys and give us a chance to win a series. That's what we came in here to do, and we're in position to do that.' Indeed, the Dodgers used four high-leverage relievers for five total innings while hanging on for their 8-7 victory over the Padres in 10 innings on Monday night. That left the bullpen weary behind Lou Trivino, who went out as the opener Tuesday and threw one hitless inning. The Dodgers' rotation is profoundly patchwork. With Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, Tony Gonsolin and Gavin Stone headlining the list of potential starters sidelined by injury — and with Shohei Ohtani still proceeding quite deliberately in his mound comeback — Los Angeles can currently send out Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 37-year-old Clayton Kershaw and Dustin May. The other two spots in the rotation are being filled by temporary callups and/or bullpen games. The Dodgers didn't even want to try a bullpen game Tuesday after falling behind early, since Roberts thought it would be more prudent to have his bullpen largely available Wednesday when Justin Wrobleski — another rotation filler by the desperate Dodgers — takes the mound. 'It's where our staff is at right now as far as who's available, who's not,' Roberts said. 'Who we can kind of push, who we can't. And these are the starters we have, so we've got to go with it and make the best.' Sauer accepted his bizarre fate, realizing the Dodgers needed his arm to fill innings while they regrouped. 'I've just got to be better with locating the ball,' said Sauer, who signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers last winter. 'I wouldn't necessarily say (it's) a pride thing. I know my role is to eat up innings, and I feel like I've got the frame and the repertoire to do that, and I'm going to go out there and compete every time.' Everyone recognizes that the deep-pocketed Dodgers' success over the past several years has happened despite a jaw-dropping slew of major pitching injuries. Last season was similar to this campaign, with practically every pitcher on the roster missing large chunks of the season and postseason. Los Angeles won the World Series last season with an October starting rotation of late-season acquisition Jack Flaherty, Yamamoto (who missed three months of the regular season) and Walker Buehler (who also missed three months) supported by multiple bullpen games. Flaherty and Buehler then left in free agency. Roberts disagreed with the notion that the Dodgers' unlikely success with bullpen games last season — particularly in the NLDS against the Padres — could have given them false confidence in their ability to solve these major pitching woes with that strategy. 'Today wasn't really a bullpen day,' Roberts said. 'If you look at last year, certain games, you have nine guys that you have available, and we certainly didn't have that today. Somebody was going to have to take three to five innings. We weren't in that situation last year, so I don't think that's a fair comparison. When you get behind, you've got to kind of just ride it out.' ___ AP MLB:
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Dodgers' pitching injury woes culminate in a punt. Matt Sauer takes one for the team in 11-1 blowout
Los Angeles Dodgers' Lou Trivino delivers a pitch against the San Diego Padres in the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Matt Sauer follows through on a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Matt Sauer, left, is relieved from a baseball game by manager Dave Roberts (30) as Dalton Rushing looks on in the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Matt Sauer, left, is relieved from a baseball game by manager Dave Roberts (30) as Dalton Rushing looks on in the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Lou Trivino delivers a pitch against the San Diego Padres in the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Matt Sauer follows through on a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) Los Angeles Dodgers' Matt Sauer, left, is relieved from a baseball game by manager Dave Roberts (30) as Dalton Rushing looks on in the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan) SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers have 14 pitchers making more than $100 million combined this season on their injured list, They've been signing, promoting, playing and releasing pitchers almost daily as they engage in a perpetual scramble to assemble enough healthy arms to compete. When the Dodgers fell behind in the third inning Tuesday night while desperately short of options on the mound, the defending World Series champions essentially decided to punt a game away to the San Diego Padres. Advertisement Matt Sauer, a 26-year-old minor leaguer getting his fourth callup already this season, threw 111 pitches while giving up 13 hits, three walks and nine runs and facing 30 batters in the Padres' 11-1 victory. The Dodgers allowed Sauer to pitch 4 2/3 innings with nothing close to his best stuff, and the Padres' loaded lineup feasted on him while turning a much-anticipated rivalry game into a laugher. Utilityman Kiké Hernández then took the mound during the sixth and pitched the final 2 1/3 innings, allowing three hits and one earned run while throwing 36 pitches — none faster than 57 mph. Manager Dave Roberts grimly acknowledged that the Dodgers essentially had to give up on trying to win this game after falling behind 3-0 in the third inning. Advertisement 'You've just got to look at where our 'pen is at, and appreciate what we have the next couple of days,' Roberts said. 'I felt it just wasn't smart to chase and red-line guys. I've got to give credit to Matt. That was as much as he's ever pitched, and (he) essentially took it for the team to try and stay away from other guys and give us a chance to win a series. That's what we came in here to do, and we're in position to do that.' Indeed, the Dodgers used four high-leverage relievers for five total innings while hanging on for their 8-7 victory over the Padres in 10 innings on Monday night. That left the bullpen weary behind Lou Trivino, who went out as the opener Tuesday and threw one hitless inning. The Dodgers' rotation is profoundly patchwork. With Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, Tony Gonsolin and Gavin Stone headlining the list of potential starters sidelined by injury — and with Shohei Ohtani still proceeding quite deliberately in his mound comeback — Los Angeles can currently send out Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 37-year-old Clayton Kershaw and Dustin May. The other two spots in the rotation are being filled by temporary callups and/or bullpen games. The Dodgers didn't even want to try a bullpen game Tuesday after falling behind early, since Roberts thought it would be more prudent to have his bullpen largely available Wednesday when Justin Wrobleski — another rotation filler by the desperate Dodgers — takes the mound. Advertisement 'It's where our staff is at right now as far as who's available, who's not,' Roberts said. 'Who we can kind of push, who we can't. And these are the starters we have, so we've got to go with it and make the best.' Sauer accepted his bizarre fate, realizing the Dodgers needed his arm to fill innings while they regrouped. 'I've just got to be better with locating the ball,' said Sauer, who signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers last winter. 'I wouldn't necessarily say (it's) a pride thing. I know my role is to eat up innings, and I feel like I've got the frame and the repertoire to do that, and I'm going to go out there and compete every time.' Everyone recognizes that the deep-pocketed Dodgers' success over the past several years has happened despite a jaw-dropping slew of major pitching injuries. Last season was similar to this campaign, with practically every pitcher on the roster missing large chunks of the season and postseason. Advertisement Los Angeles won the World Series last season with an October starting rotation of late-season acquisition Jack Flaherty, Yamamoto (who missed three months of the regular season) and Walker Buehler (who also missed three months) supported by multiple bullpen games. Flaherty and Buehler then left in free agency. Roberts disagreed with the notion that the Dodgers' unlikely success with bullpen games last season — particularly in the NLDS against the Padres — could have given them false confidence in their ability to solve these major pitching woes with that strategy. 'Today wasn't really a bullpen day,' Roberts said. 'If you look at last year, certain games, you have nine guys that you have available, and we certainly didn't have that today. Somebody was going to have to take three to five innings. We weren't in that situation last year, so I don't think that's a fair comparison. When you get behind, you've got to kind of just ride it out.' ___ AP MLB: