The Rays franchise sent a "two-sentence letter" to St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman on Monday "formally notifying him that it will not seek to extend the agreement" that allowed it to explore a new ballpark site in Hillsborough County, according to a front-page piece by Frago & Solomon of the TAMPA BAY TIMES. The three-year period St. Petersburg granted the team to research ballpark options throughout the Tampa area is "officially over with no deal in place." The team "remains mum on its future and has not signaled that it's interested in pursuing" a new ballpark in St. Petersburg. At this point, the only contract the Rays are "bound to honor is the one that states the team must play in Tropicana Field" until '27. After that, where the Rays "choose to play their home games is as uncertain as ever." The team's letter to Kriseman "offers no clarity on that." St. Petersburg City Council Chair Charlie Gerdes said that he does not "have a sense of relief." Gerdes: "It's not time to be relieved, it's time to make sure they stay here for a long time." St. Petersburg officials have said that if the Rays "want to reignite the Ybor [City] discussion, it would require a new legal agreement." Gerdes said that the price of such a request "could mean the team gives up potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in development rights" it currently holds over the 85-acre Tropicana Field site (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 12/19).
