Tampa Bay Rays Say They Are In Talks For A Potential Sale Amid Stadium Uncertainty
The Tampa Bay Rays say they are in exclusive discussions with a Florida investment group for a potential sale of the team. The Rays are valued at 1.25 billion dollars, according to Forbes magazine. Stuart Sternberg bought the Major League Baseball club for 200 million dollars in 2004.
The Tampa Bay Rays announced that the team has recently commenced exclusive discussions with a group led by Patrick Zalupski, Bill Cosgrove, Ken Babby, and prominent Tampa Bay investors concerning a possible sale of the team, the club said Wednesday while declining further comment.
The potential sale comes at a precarious time for the Rays and their home ballpark. They are playing this season at the spring training home of the New York Yankees in Tampa after the roof of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg was heavily damaged during Hurricane Milton last October. Before the hurricane, the Rays and the city had agreed on a plan for a 1.3 billion–dollar stadium development project next to Tropicana Field. In March, Sternberg said the club was withdrawing from that agreement.
St. Petersburg is spending about 55 million dollars to repair Tropicana Field, with a plan for the Rays to return there in 2026. The city and the club have a three-year agreement to play there. Beyond that, the club's future in the Tampa Bay area is uncertain.
When the Rays withdrew from the project, the city noted that it was possible the club would have new owners. 'If, in the coming months, a new owner who demonstrates a commitment to honoring their agreements and our community priorities emerges, we will consider a partnership to keep baseball in St. Pete,' Mayor Ken Welch said in March. 'But we will not put our city's progress on hold as we await a collaborative and community-focused baseball partner.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Red Sox reinstate Wilyer Abreu, option Kristian Campbell to Triple-A
The Boston Red Sox have reinstated outfielder Wilyer Abreu from the 10-day injured list and optioned Kristian Campbell to Triple-A Worcester. Abreu had been placed on the injured list on June 9 with a left oblique strain and will make his return when the Red Sox open a three-game series on the road against the San Francisco Giants on Friday night. The Red Sox also traded lefty Zach Penrod to the Los Angeles Dodgers for cash. The 28-year-old Penrod was designated for assignment on Sunday. He had a 4.91 ERA in seven games in the minors this season. Abreu played two rehab games at Worcester before being activated. He played 64 games this season in the majors, batting .245 with 13 home runs and 32 RBIs. The 22-year-old Campbell played 67 games so far this season, starting 54 at second base and eight more in the outfield. He was batting .223 with six home runs and 21 RBIs.
Al Arabiya
3 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Cubs legend Sammy Sosa returns to Wrigley Field after 20-plus year hiatus
Legendary Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa returned to Wrigley Field for the first time in more than 20 years on Friday before Chicago's afternoon game with the Seattle Mariners. Sosa, who is set to be inducted into the Cubs' team Hall of Fame this year, arrived at the iconic North Side ballpark in a black SUV. He was greeted by owner Tom Ricketts, who embraced him in a hug as he exited the vehicle. Sosa became the face of the Cubs franchise, where he played 13 seasons after coming in a trade from the crosstown White Sox in March 1992. A seven-time All-Star, Sosa hit 545 home runs in 1,811 games with the Cubs and hit a franchise-record 66 in 1998, when he was named the NL's MVP. Sosa, now 56, played his final game with the Cubs at Wrigley on Oct. 2, 2004, when he homered and had two hits in an 8–6 loss to Atlanta. During his years with the Cubs, Sosa appeared to bulk up drastically and was a headliner in a generation of baseball's biggest names linked to performance-enhancing drugs. The Cubs traded him to Baltimore with cash in February 2005 for three players. Sosa appeared to acknowledge using performance-enhancing drugs in December when he released a statement saying he was sorry for mistakes without specifying them. 'There were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games,' he said in the statement. 'I never broke any laws. But in hindsight I made mistakes, and I apologize.' On Friday morning, Sosa posed for photos with rising Cubs star Pete Crow-Armstrong outside the team's clubhouse, and a video showed Sosa embracing manager Craig Counsell in his office before the game. The Cubs remained mum, however, on any ceremony or event before or during Friday's game. In Thursday's 8–7 loss to Milwaukee, Crow-Armstrong went deep to set a new team record for reaching 20 home runs and 20-plus stolen bases the fastest, doing it in 73 games. Sosa had the old mark of 96 set in 1994.
Al Arabiya
7 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Putin says Russia plans to deepen military-technical ties with ‘friendly countries'
President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia intends to develop military and technical cooperation with 'friendly countries' with whom Moscow wants to jointly produce arms and train military personnel. In a speech at Russia's showcase economic forum in St Petersburg, Putin said Moscow also planned to modernize its own armed forces and their bases by equipping them with the latest weapons and technology. 'We will harness new technology to improve the combat capabilities of the Russian armed forces, modernize military infrastructure facilities, (and) equip them with the latest technology and weapons and equipment,' he said. 'At the same time, we intend to develop military-technical co-operation with friendly countries. And we are talking not only about supplies or the modernization of equipment and weapons, but also about joint development, personnel training, and the creation of turn-key enterprises and production facilities,' he said. Talking about global trade, Putin said Russia planned to develop trade ties with its partners by removing barriers, opening up market niches and deepening investment cooperation.
