New Rays owner targeting Opening Day 2029 for ballpark

The Tampa Bay Rays' new managing partner and co-chair Patrick Zapulski announced on Tuesday that the organization intends to open a new ballpark in the Tampa Bay area on Opening Day 2029.

Zapulski's purchase of the club from Stu Sternberg for $1.7B was given final approval by Major League Baseball last week.

Zapulski, along with co-chair Bill Cosgrove and CEO Ken Babby, made their first public comments at an introductory new conference held at George M. Steinbrenner Field. The Rays played this past season at that venue after Hurricane Milton caused major damage to Tropicana Field one year ago.

"Delivering on that objective will be our first priority," Zalupski said about the 2029 opening. "We acknowledge this is aggressive and perhaps audacious, but time is of the essence."

Zapulski's group is just getting started evaluating sites in the Tampa and St. Petersburg areas, in addition to potential locations in Hillsborough County and Pinellas County.

The Rays have met with their counterparts in Atlanta and would consider a similar set-up to The Battery and Truist Park. The stadium, however, would most likely be a fully-enclosed dome.

"More is better, but it's also a balance of location, quality of location," Zapulski said. "We want a great location and as much land as we can get.

"It's what you have to have in today's MLB to be successful. Without that revenue generation, it's going to be really, really challenging or nearly impossible to compete with the major markets."

The Rays ranked 26th of 30 teams in total payroll for 2025 ($87.6 million) and that is unlikely to change much in the near future.

"The economics of the club have not changed since we acquired them," Zalupski said.

The team will be able to return to Tropicana Field in 2026. In addition to a repaired roof, there will be a new sound system and video boards.

"We are just getting started. We've got a lot of work ahead of us," Zalupski said. "It's going to be challenging, but we're confident that we can be successful here in Tampa Bay."

-- Field Level Media