1:55pm: The group is predicted to stay within the Tampa Bay space if the present sale course of is accomplished, Marc Topkin and Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Occasions report. It’s not but clear the place precisely inside that area Zalupski’s group would search to have a brand new stadium constructed.
12:18pm: The Rays have issued the next assertion acknowledging the negotiations however declined to offer additional remark or particulars:
“The Tampa Bay Rays introduced that the group has lately commenced unique discussions with a bunch led by Patrick Zalupski, Invoice Cosgrove, Ken Babby and outstanding Tampa Bay traders regarding a doable sale of the group. Neither the Rays nor the group can have additional remark throughout the discussions.”
11:40am: Rays proprietor Stuart Sternberg is in “superior talks” with Jacksonville actual property developer Patrick Zalupski a couple of sale of the franchise for about $1.7 billion, per a report from Scott Soshnick and Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico. Zalupski has signed a letter of intent to buy the membership, the Sportico pair provides, although that doesn’t signify {that a} deal will certainly cross the road. Nonetheless, Joel Sherman off the New York Put up hears equally, reporting that talks between the 2 events are severe and that the Zalupski-led group is the one purchaser with which the Rays are negotiating for the time being.
Sternberg bought the Rays franchise for $200MM again in 2004 and has spent years unsuccessfully making an attempt to safe public funding for a brand new stadium in or across the St. Petersburg/Tampa space. A deal lastly seemed to be properly on its manner towards completion a 12 months in the past, however Hurricane Milton wrought catastrophic injury on Tropicana Discipline, derailing these plans and pushing the Rays to briefly relocate to Tampa’s George M. Steinbrenner Discipline — dwelling to the Yankees’ Florida State League affiliate and their annual dwelling park throughout spring coaching.
Zalupski is the CEO of Dream Finders Properties, a publicly traded, Jacksonville-based developer that has constructed greater than 31,000 houses throughout ten states. Forbes estimates his internet value at $1.4 billion, whereas his firm’s valuation rests at $3.4 billion.
Per Sportico, Zalupski is the lead investor in a bigger group that counts Ken Babby and Invoice Cosgrove amongst a number of potential minority stakeholders. The previous holds majority stakes within the Marlins’ Triple-A affiliate and the Guardians’ Double-A membership and is the son of outstanding NBA agent (and former Phoenix Suns president of basketball operations) Lon Babby. The latter is the CEO of Union House Mortgage Group. Different traders are concerned and determine to come back to gentle if the sale course of certainly continues towards completion.
The potential sale of the group comes simply months after spring stories suggesting that commissioner Rob Manfred and a number of other homeowners all through MLB have been starting to strain Sternberg to orchestrate a sale of the membership. On the time, Sternberg was stated to on the very least be courting further minority homeowners to put money into the group — all whereas native enterprise leaders have been within the early levels of placing collectively teams to doubtlessly pursue a majority stake within the membership. None of Zalupski, Cosgrove or Babby have been listed as potential patrons on the time, although it’s truthful to presume they have been concerned in and/or spearheading a few of these early efforts.
Sternberg has owned the Rays for greater than twenty years, and the group’s stadium has been on the forefront of any and all narratives surrounding the group since that point. With the A’s within the technique of transferring to a brand new dwelling on the Las Vegas strip, Tropicana Discipline was thought-about maybe essentially the most dilapidated facility in Main League Baseball — even earlier than final 12 months’s hurricane injury, which noticed all the roof ripped off “the Trop” and left the Rays and not using a dwelling stadium for just a few months. The transfer to Steinbrenner Discipline at present solely runs by way of the 2025 season.
All through his time proudly owning the Rays, Sternberg has explored a wide range of choices starting from setting up a brand new facility on the present web site of Tropicana Discipline, to constructing a brand new stadium in downtown Ybor Metropolis — even to a convoluted cut up association that may see the Rays host half their dwelling video games in Florida and half in Montreal. Past the dated nature of Tropicana Discipline, the placement of the park has been a frequent supply of consternation for followers; the stadium isn’t in Tampa correct however slightly on the close by — and, for a lot of, troublesome to entry — Pinellas County peninsula within the metropolis of St. Petersburg. That’s considered one of many outstanding elements within the Rays’ longstanding attendance troubles.
With the Rays residing in a small media market and perennially unable to ramp up attendance, payroll has been a frequent problem. Tampa Bay is among the many backside groups within the league every year by way of participant payroll, regardless of receiving hefty annual sums from the league’s revenue-sharing system. The fixed payroll restrictions from Sternberg have led to the Rays turning into infamous for creating star gamers then buying and selling them off to different golf equipment for packages of youthful, extra controllable and — crucially — cheaper expertise. That’s created one thing of a self-fulfilling prophecy, because it’s onerous to retain followers and bolster attendance when native residents’ favourite gamers are consistently being shipped out for younger gamers which are normal unknowns to nearly all of the fan base.
Previous to Hurricane Milton, the Rays had a tentative settlement for the development of a $1.3 billion, 30,000-seat facility within the Gasoline Plant district close to the present Tropicana Discipline web site. Development of that park was half of a bigger $6.5 billion redevelopment venture within the space. Mass hurricane injury within the space slowed essential votes on funding and raised troublesome to unanswerable questions on the price of repairing Tropicana Discipline, the viability of potential interim houses for the Rays and numerous different logistical points. Sternberg introduced again in March that his group was now not pursuing the Gasoline Plant venture — an final result that had grown more and more inevitable as frustrations between the group, town of St. Petersburg and Pinellas County all performed out in ugly, public trend.
The misplaced 2025 season at Tropicana Discipline additionally pushed the Rays’ present lease on the stadium again a 12 months; it had been slated to run out after the 2027 season however now runs by way of the 2028 marketing campaign. In fact, it’s nonetheless not solely clear that Tropicana Discipline shall be repaired in time for the Rays to play their 2026 dwelling video games there. Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Occasions lately reported that town of St. Petersburg permitted one other $5.3MM in funding, bringing the overall to $38.5MM of the estimated $57MM wanted to restore Tropicana Discipline’s damages. Whether or not the rest of that funding shall be permitted and whether or not the requisite work may be accomplished in a well timed method stay unclear.
If the potential sale goes by way of, there’ll nonetheless be extra questions than solutions. The hope is that Tropicana Discipline shall be prepared at or very close to the start of the 2026 common season. Even when that timeline stays on monitor — by way of securing remaining funding, finishing the work and the wild card of avoiding any additional climate injury throughout hurricane season — it nonetheless wouldn’t be clear the place the group’s dwelling video games would happen following the 2028 marketing campaign.
Manfred has stated his hope is to maintain two groups in Florida, although even that opens numerous prospects. The Rays have explored constructing websites in a number of neighborhoods, and Corridor of Famer Barry Larkin referenced the Rays’ ongoing stadium issues when discussing his efforts as a part of a bunch that hopes to deliver Main League Baseball to Orlando. Wanting past Florida, the cities of Nashville, Salt Lake Metropolis and Portland have made a need to deliver MLB to their cities often known as properly. All of these areas shall be speculatively tied to the Rays as the present possession scenario performs out.
