According to the reports, the owner of Tampa Bay Rays, Stu Sternberg, faces greater pressure to sell the franchise of the MLB Commissioner, Rob Manfred and other owners, according to Atlético.
MLB could even try to eliminate part of Rays’ income exchange income to try to force a sale, according to the report. Rays obtain $ 60 million in income participation currently. The informed reason for the pressure is related to Sternberg considering going back outside an stadium agreement.
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An overview of the stadium before a game between Oakland Athletics and Tampa Bay Rays in Tropicana Field. (Nathan Ray Seebeck-Use Today Sports)
Sternberg has until the end of this month to decide whether to continue with the new stadium agreement in the historic district of gas plants in downtown San Petersburg, Florida.
The Rays have been trying to build a new stadium for 17 years, and the urgency to address the problem increased last fall after Hurricane Milton started the roof of its current place, Tropicana Field. The team is ready to play their games at home 2025 at the spring training facilities of the New York Yankees rivals.
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View of the damaged ceiling of the Tropicana Field Stadium, the house of the Rays of the Bay of Tampa de las Major Leagues, after Hurricane Milton touched Earth, in the center of San Petersburg, Florida, on October 10, 2024. (Reuters/Octavio Jones)
The Rays and Sternberg previously planned to contribute $ 700 million to a new stadium. However, a delayed vote of the County led to a retention in construction and, therefore, to the increase in costs, so Sternberg does not believe that he and his team should have to cover the subsequent costs.
The Pinellas County Commission postponed a vote on its part of the new stadium bonds in November, leaving that project in Limbo.
The potential candidates to buy the rays if Sternberg is pressed to sell includes the former owner of the Yankees minority, Joe Molloy.
The main owner of the Tampa Bay Rays, Stuart Sternberg, and the manager Kevin Cash Watch while the pitchers and receivers carry out their first spring training training in Port Charlotte, Florida, on February 12, 2025, in Charlotte Sports Park. Hurricane Milton starts the roof of the Tropicana countryside in St. Petersburg, Florida, where the Rays usually play their regular seasonal games. They play their games at the regular season this year at the Spring Training Stadium in the New York Yankees, Steinbrenner Field, which has the capacity for 11,000 people. (Thomas O’Neill/Nurphoto)
Molloy confirmed his interest in Tamp Bay Times.
“Yes, I am leading a group of outstanding investors based in Tampa Bay who are interested in acquiring the Rays of Tampa Bay. We have gathered an incredible team that shares our vision,” Molloy told The Outlet.
Tampa businessman Dan Doyle Jr., is also part of another group interested in the Rays, according to the report.
