MLB Approves $1.7B Sale of Tampa Bay Rays to Zalupski Group; New Stadium Plans in the Works

MLB owners backed the $1.7 billion Rays sale to a team led by Patrick Zalupski, a builder from Jacksonville. The vote passed with strong support on Monday.

This week marks the end of Stu Sternberg's time as main owner. He'll keep a small 10% share for now but wants to sell it later. His group ran the team for two decades.

The buyers mix business minds from different fields. Bill Cosgrove runs Union Home Mortgage. Rick Workman started Heartland Dental. Dan Doyle heads DEX Imaging. Fred Ridley chairs Augusta National Golf Club. Ken Babby, who'll run the team, leads Fast Forward Group.

"The situation in Tampa has a lot of promising developments," said MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, according to Front Office Sports. "The sale to a group that has huge, deep roots in Tampa would be a definite positive... Things are looking up in Tampa and are headed in the right direction."

Since 2005, the team won big under Sternberg. They took four division titles and went to two World Series. They lost to Philadelphia in '08 and the LA Dodgers in 2020. The wins came despite tight money limits.

A big task waits: finding a new home field. The Rays dropped plans for a $1.3 billion park near Tropicana Field in March. Storm damage and costs killed that idea. Now the new group must start fresh in their search.

After Hurricane Milton struck, the team moved to Steinbrenner Field. The small park fits just 10,046 fans. While they sold out 61 times, total crowds dropped by half a million from last year.

Matt Silverman and Brian Auld will step back to advise the team. Erik Neander stays in charge of picking players and making trades.

They'll play at a fixed-up Tropicana Field in 2026. The new group wants spots near Tampa's football and hockey teams, but they'll check both sides of the bay for the right place.