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Miami Herald
06-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
The first step in keeping the Rays in Tampa Bay is a Trop extension
ST. PETERSBURG - All these years later, the Rays' use agreement at Tropicana Field is 90% completed, and still there is no hint of a long-term stadium solution in sight for Tampa Bay. There may, however, be a temporary solution. A tourniquet, if you will. The Rays and St. Petersburg officials need to come together to discuss a short-term extension of the Trop lease. This would look nothing like the 10-year extension the team proposed earlier this year with the team, the city and Pinellas County each contributing up to $250 million to refurbish the aging stadium. Instead, this would more closely resemble the team's one-year agreement at Steinbrenner Field this season. For however many years they decide on - it could be two seasons, it could be five - the Rays would pay rent, the city would be responsible for the stadium's upkeep, and the redevelopment of the property could begin on the eastern-most side of the vast parking area with the city reaping all of those profits under a new rights agreement. What's the rationale for the plan? It either buys time or solves problems for everyone involved. For the city? It lessens expenses incurred for the city's contractual obligation to fix the Trop roof and bring the stadium back up to a major league-ready status after Hurricane Milton. Instead of losing tens of millions of dollars just to get the ballpark prepped for the next three seasons until the use agreement runs out, the city could recoup millions in rent payments while getting several more years of baseball traffic in downtown. For the Rays? It gives them a longer runway to decide the team's future. Whether that means finding a new stadium deal in Tampa Bay or even planning a possible relocation elsewhere, there is no scenario where they would have a new stadium built by the time the use agreement ends. Without a Trop extension, the Rays would undoubtedly be looking at a temporary stadium situation in 2029, much like the Athletics today. For aspiring ownership groups? Same answer as above. Even if Stuart Sternberg sold to Tampa Bay buyers in the coming months - and nothing appears imminent - it could take years to secure land and funding for a new stadium, not to mention construction, and there would be a scramble for a temporary home. For Major League Baseball? It might theoretically satisfy commissioner Rob Manfred's request that Sternberg establish a "go forward" plan. It would likely delay MLB's hopes of a two-team expansion, but it could increase the odds that the Rays remain in Tampa Bay, which is Manfred's stated preference. It's not a perfect solution. It doesn't help the team's revenue problems. It won't magically fix the decades-long pursuit of a new stadium. And the Rays will likely balk at the idea of paying anything more than nominal rent - they're supposedly paying the Yankees $10 million for the use of Steinbrenner Field but are banking on getting reimbursed through a business interruption insurance policy - so there are kinks that will need to be worked out. But it could, in the long run, turn out to be profitable for the team. With everyone in baseball anticipating a work stoppage when the current collective bargaining agreement runs out before the 2027 season, it could have an effect on how much would-be owners are willing to pay for a franchise. By adding years to the lease, the Rays could see an increase in the team's value once a new labor agreement is reached. It also allows for tensions between the Rays and local politicians to dissipate. Time may not heal every wound, but future elections could change the makeup at city hall and in county offices. And while St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch has shot down the idea of negotiating with Sternberg about a new stadium in St. Pete, a short lease extension would ensure the Rays remain in the city beyond a second Welch term, should he win reelection next year. Aspiring ownership groups in Tampa Bay may not like the idea of taking the pressure off Sternberg to sell right away, but there are no indications that a quick sale is on the way. And without an extension, the Rays could be negotiating with other cities/buyers for a potential move in less than 40 months. Manfred's devotion to Tampa Bay will undoubtedly wane quickly if the city locks the Rays out of Tropicana Field and there is no full-sized stadium available here in 2029. Yes, a short-term extension is only a temporary fix. But, one way or another, it's necessary for Tampa Bay to keep baseball. Whether Sternberg sells the team to local buyers tomorrow or still owns it in 2029, a lease extension at the Trop is still essential. John Romano can be reached at jromano@ Follow @romano_tbtimes. • • • Sign up for our Sports Today newsletter to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida. Every weekday, tune into our Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast to hear reporter Rick Stroud break down the biggest stories in Tampa Bay sports. Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on X and Facebook. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
A photo in Steinbrenner Field's visiting clubhouse needs no words
TAMPA — The massive makeover the Rays did to turn Steinbrenner Field into their 2025 home includes signs, posters, placards, stickers, videoboard programming and more, designed primarily to replace Yankees branding with their own. But what may be the most striking image of their relocation hangs on a wall just inside the visiting clubhouse — a photograph of the tattered Tropicana Field roof in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Milton. Advertisement The 4-by-6-foot image, taken by team photographer Will Vragovic, serves as a jarring reminder of why the Rays are playing this season at the Yankees spring training stadium. Rays players and staff, some of whom were impacted by hurricane damage themselves, obviously are familiar with the devastation the storm brought. But visiting clubhouse manager Brandon 'Tank' Richesin had the idea to remind and educate members of other teams about why they are playing at the stadium. Why the clubhouse is not as spacious, the furnishings not as nice, the dining area not as convenient, the facilities not as upgraded as they're used to elsewhere. Advertisement 'Tank knows things will be different, less than ideal,' Rays chief business officer Bill Walsh said. 'This is his appeal to visiting players and staff to remember what happened and how we got here.' Doing so may preempt, or at least tone down, complaints visiting players might have, or at least discourage them from being shared publicly. Initial word Friday was that the Rockies were understanding and OK with the setup. (It may be different when the Yankees visit Tampa April 17-20 and find themselves on the visitors side as the Rays enjoy their massive, state-of-the-art, better-than-the-Trop home clubhouse facilities.) But as with many other aspects of the difficult situation the Rays were thrust into after being displaced, they are trying to do the best they can. Advertisement 'If things are challenging this year, maybe things look a little different, things are a little more difficult on that side, it's a little reminder of where we're coming from and why we're in the situation we're in,' said Warren Hypes, vice president of creative and brand. 'And we want to have a little piece of our old home in our home away from home.' The Rays also are leaning into the narrative in other ways. There is a brief shot of the Trop damage in their hype video, plus a dramatic edit on the announcement of playing at Steinbrenner Field. The cover of their media guide is a collage of photos reflecting their offseason, including the damaged Trop, players/staff at hurricane-relief events, the relocated Fan Fest at the St. Pete Pier and Rays-branded Steinbrenner Field. Advertisement There is discussion about adding a damaged Trop photo to the home clubhouse as well. The $76 million men The Rays opened the season Friday with a major-league payroll of $76,258,067 — down 21% from last year's franchise record $96,568,667 but in line with their previous high of $78,245,400 in 2022. Our calculation is simple math, the salaries of the players on the active roster (26) and injured list (five). Signing bonuses, incentives and option buyouts are not included (nor is the $8 million they were to pay Wander Franco, who is on the restricted list). Some players have split contracts and get less when in the minors. Players on IL are marked with x-. Advertisement x-Ha-Seong Kim $13,000,000 Brandon Lowe 10,500,000 Yandy Diaz 10,000,000 Danny Jansen 8,000,000 Zack Littell 5,720,000 Pete Fairbanks 3,666,667 x-Shane McClanahan 3,600,000 Drew Rasmussen 2,000,000 Shane Baz 1,450,000 Taylor Walls 1,350,000 Garrett Cleavinger 1,200,000 Ben Rortvedt 1,125,000 Edwin Uceta 815,000 Jose Caballero 776,800 Kevin Kelly 776,000 x-Richie Palacios 775,700 Ryan Pepiot 774,600 Taj Bradley 774,200 Christopher Morel 771,800 Josh Lowe 771,500 Jonny DeLuca 770,100 x-Alex Faedo 769,900 Manuel Rodriguez 769,400 Jonathan Aranda 766,500 Junior Caminero 764,100 Mason Englert 763,400 Hunter Bigge 762,700 Curtis Mead 762,200 Advertisement Mason Montgomery 761,800 Kameron Misner 760,700 x-Nathan Lavender 760,000 Boss talk Anecdotes abounded through the years of how much legendary former Yankees owner George Steinbrenner disliked the Rays and always wanted to beat them. Jon Heyman revisited that theme in a New York Post article, quoting an unnamed former Yankee suggesting the old Boss would be 'rolling over in his grave' about the stadium-sharing agreement. But current Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner set that straight, telling Heyman his dad loved being a longtime member of the Tampa Bay community and 'I have no doubt that, if asked, he would have helped.' Advertisement Related, Lindsey Naimoli, daughter of original Rays owner Vince Naimoli, made an interesting point in an email, suggesting the current arrangement is the product of the relationship her father had with George Steinbrenner. 'Let's thank the real people behind this deal that have passed away. Sincerely missed. If it was not for their extraordinary relationship that truly brought MLB to Tampa, when Mr. Steinbrenner was such a mentor to my father, well that is what fundamentally forged the ability to give the Rays a place in this unorthodox season.' Rays rumblings When Kevin Cash moved into the home manager's office, he found a note in a desk drawer from Yankees counterpart Aaron Boone telling him to keep the place warm: 'Boonie's great. He just said, 'Enjoy it, good health, and you're getting to be in an amazing facility,' which we are. Very appreciative. I've had other things left by managers (such as good buddy Terry Francona); this one was pretty classy.' … The Rays pregame introductions Friday ran about 80 people long, including the bat boys and three team chefs. Pitcher Taj Bradley stood out by standing with his back to the fans, then turning around and waving and smiling. … Though the Yankees had listed a Steinbrenner Field capacity of 11,026, the Rays — after reconfiguring some of the standing-room and social-seating areas — came up with 10,046 as the full-house number. … That, baseball historian Rick Vaughn said, apparently makes it the smallest big-league stadium for a full season since 1911, when the Boston National League team — with an aging pitcher named Cy Young — played at the 9,800-seat South End Grounds. … Playing off the intimacy of the single-deck stadium, Walsh put an interesting spin on the Steinbrenner Field seating options: 'The 10,000 seats at Steinbrenner Field are as good as the best 10,000 seats at any other major-league park.' … Josh Lowe, who left Friday's game with an oblique injury that landed him on the injured list, on the dramatic ending: 'I wanted to scream, but it hurts to scream.' … An MLB contingent led by deputy commissioner Dan Halem attended Friday's opener. ... Another good line from Walsh in opening Wednesday's stadium media event: 'I'd like to start with a sentence I never thought I would say - Welcome to George M, Steinbrenner Field, home of the 2025 Tampa Bay Rays.' … Rockies manager Bud Black is a baseball lifer, but this weekend was his first visit to Steinbrenner Field, which opened in 1996. Advertisement • • • Sign up for the Sports Today newsletter to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida. Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on Instagram, X and Facebook.
Washington Post
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
No, Trump can't legally send Americans to prison in El Salvador
John D. Bessler is a law professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law, an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center and a visiting scholar at the University of Minnesota Law School's Human Rights Center. President Donald Trump has suggested sending U.S. citizens convicted of crimes to prison in El Salvador, outside the reach of the U.S. legal system. 'The homegrowns are next,' Trump said during a meeting with El Salvador's president, Nayib Bukele, adding he'd 'have to build five more places' to hold the prospective inmates. The Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment prohibits this course of action. White House lawyers should read the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision in Trop v. Dulles. The court barred the government from rendering U.S. citizens stateless, which is similar to what Trump is threatening to do if Americans are imprisoned abroad. During World War II, Albert Trop, an American citizen, was serving as a U.S. Army private in Morocco. He escaped a stockade and was taken into custody the next day and court-martialed. Convicted of desertion, he was sentenced to three years of hard labor, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge. When Trop applied in 1952 for a passport, his application was denied on the ground that, under the Nationality Act of 1940, he had lost his U.S. citizenship by virtue of his conviction. In Trop, the Supreme Court held that denationalization as a punishment is a violation of the cruel and unusual punishments clause of the Eighth Amendment. 'It is a form of punishment more primitive than torture, for it destroys for the individual the political existence that was centuries in the development,' the court concluded. 'In short, the expatriate has lost the right to have rights.' The Trop case makes clear that any effort to incarcerate U.S. citizens abroad would be an Eighth Amendment violation. Were that to happen, people would — as a practical matter — be deprived of their fundamental constitutional rights. They would be at the mercy of a foreign legal system or, worse yet, a dictator's arbitrary whims. Bukele called himself 'the world's coolest dictator,' and El Salvador operates the notorious Terrorism Confinement Center, known as CECOT. Any American held abroad — as Chief Justice Earl Warren pointed out in Trop — would be 'at the sufferance of the country in which he happens to find himself.' 'Banishment,' Warren concluded, is 'a fate universally decried by civilized people.' As just one example, the Eighth Amendment protects against horrendous conditions of confinement. But how would someone in a foreign prison meaningfully assert an Eighth Amendment violation from a cell controlled by another sovereign country? The case of Kilmar Abrego García, an immigrant and longtime Maryland resident who the Trump administration admitted in court was sent in error to El Salvador, illustrates the threat. The Supreme Court ordered the administration to facilitate García's return, but it has resisted taking action. Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III — a Reagan appointee — warned in his Fourth Circuit order on April 17 that 'the government is asserting a right to stash away residents of this country in foreign prisons without the semblance of due process that is the foundation of our constitutional order.' The government's claim that nothing can be done for García now that he's out of U.S. custody, Wilkinson observed, 'should be shocking not only to judges, but to the intuitive sense of liberty that Americans far removed from courthouses still hold dear.' 'If today the Executive claims the right to deport without due process and in disregard of court orders,' Wilkinson wrote, 'what assurance will there be tomorrow that it will not deport American citizens and then disclaim responsibility to bring them home?' Trump has said he'll only send Americans convicted of crimes abroad if it is legal. The Supreme Court has made clear it is not. We should hope Wilkinson is right, 'that it is not naïve to believe our good brethren in the Executive Branch perceive the rule of law as vital to the American ethos.'
CBS News
04-04-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
St. Pete approves $22.5M to fix hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field roof
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 led 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. "We are pleased to see City Council take this important step toward preparing Tropicana Field for Major League Baseball in time for 2026 opening day," Rays co-president Brian Auld said in a statement. "We commend in particular city, Rays and MLB staff for their cooperative efforts to get us to this point." 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. 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. 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."
NBC Sports
03-04-2025
- Business
- NBC Sports
St. Petersburg to spend $22.5M to fix hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field roof, aiming for Rays return in 2026
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — 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. 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 at some point. 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. 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. 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. Citing mounting costs, the Rays 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. '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.'
