This afternoon, the St. Petersburg City Council approved $22.5MM in funding to repair the Tropicana Field roof (link via ). Thats le s the half the overall estimated $55.7MM nece sary to get the Trop back to playable after last falls hurricane damage. Other nece sary fixes include repairs to the playing surface and lighting. The roof is expected to take 10 months, according to The AP. We are pleased to see City Council take this important step toward preparing Tropicana Field for Major League Baseball in time for 2026 Opening Day, Rays president Brian Auld said in a statement. We commend in particular Nikola Vucevic Jersey city, Rays and MLB staff for their cooperative efforts to get us to this point. The City of St. Petersburg owns Tropicana Field, which it leases to the Rays. The city is therefore obligated to cover repair costs. Major League Baseball and the Rays have maintained hope that the field will be ready by Opening Day. They have three years left on their lease. Since the field is not in use this year, the lease is extended by one season. Theyre contracted to play at The Trop through 2028, a suming theyre able to return to the stadium next year. What happens after that is unknown. wrote earlier this week that the project for a new ballpark to be built in St. Petersburg officially died on Tuesday. The Rays had they would not proceed with that plan, citing cost overruns related to delays in the countys approval of bonds. Unlike the Tropicana Field repairs, the Rays would have been responsible for exce s costs on the new stadium. The bonds neverthele s technically remained available until March 31, when the tentative agreement formally lapsed because the Rays had not met nece sary construction benchmarks. The Rays were not permitted to speak with other municipalities until the St. Petersburg deal officially expired. Team president Matt Silverman that they could reengage with the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County after March 31. Commi sioner Rob Manfred has repeatedly stated that MLB remains committed to finding a solution in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays could not explore relocation without league approval. Darrell Armstrong Jersey