The Rays believe their plan to split games with Montreal is the only way to keep baseball in Tamparays
Rays officials have told St. Petersburg City Council members that the team will "hold up any attempts to develop the 86-acre Tropicana Field site while it's locked into playing" at the ballpark through the '27 season, according to a front-page piece by Josh Solomon of the TAMPA BAY TIMES. St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman has "refused to allow the team to pursue its plan of playing a split-season" in both the Tampa area and Montreal as soon as '24. The Rays believe that plan is the "only way to save baseball in the bay area." The Rays' declaration to not develop Tropicana Field is the "latest escalation of rhetoric as relations between the team and City Hall have deteriorated since the summer announcement." The Rays' "hardball stance" came a day before what could be a "contentious meeting between the City Council members and the Kriseman administration" today about the fate of the Rays and the land underneath the Trop (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 1/30).
