Anyone remember the NBA bubble at Walt Disney World? We’re all a little hazy on that awful and weird window, so it was a wild time when professional basketball teams played out the remainder of their season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports, while living in the resort hotels.
Well, there’s the vague possibility that history will repeat itself. Sorta. Well, barely–if at all. As you’re undoubtedly aware, Hurricane Milton hit Florida last week, making landfall as a historically dangerous Category 3 storm near Siesta Key on Florida’s central west coast. The hurricane caused irreparable damage to the roof of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, where the Tampa Bay Rays play.
The fiberglass roof was torn to shreds, leaving almost the entirety of the building exposed. The Rays have said they will take the next few weeks to assess the damage, but various Major League Baseball insiders are already reporting that it cannot conceivably be ready by opening day and that the costs to fix the roof will be prohibitively expensive.
MLB Insider Jim Bowden reports that it would cost “9 figures” to replace the roof and doesn’t make financial sense to do so as a result. Moreover, he points out that the Rays can’t play at the Trop without a roof because there’s no draining system for rain.
Honestly, when I first read this tweet, I thought it was insane. I mean, it’s one shredded roof, Michael. What could it cost, ten dollars?
How on earth do a bunch of tarps cost $100,000,000? Maybe he was including the decimal point, and nine figures actually meant $1,000,000.00? That certainly seems more plausible. Then I realized I know nothing about engineering or roofing or drainage or the structural integrity of the stadium, especially given that my initial thought was just “tear off the shredded roof and play as-is.” A brilliant idea if I’ve ever had one, but total non-starter due to the lack of drainage.
The Minnesota Twins spent $18 million to repair the old Metrodome after it was damaged by snow in 2010. I guess inflation now just means “add a bunch of zeros to stuff.” More to the point, the damage occurred in December and wasn’t fully fixed until July. Inflation of the monetary variety isn’t the only change since then–construction projects also often take longer. The cost and timeline aren’t necessarily the same, but the Rays are pushing their ability to make it back to Tropicana Field by Opening Day next season.
Which brings us to the operative question: where will the Rays play in 2025?
Marc Topkin of TampaBay.com takes this a step further and writes that there are questions about whether the Tampa Bay Rays can ever return to Tropicana Field.
The reason spending $100+ million to repair the roof and whatever else is wrong with Tropicana Field may not make sense in the first place is because it’s only going to be around for a few more years. The Rays are planning on playing in a new stadium in 2028, which is slated to have its groundbreaking in January 2025. (Or was–we don’t know whether that’s impacted by Hurricane Milton or if construction resources will be spread thin due to other projects as a consequence of the storm, resulting in a longer timeline.)
Once that’s built, Tropicana Field will be demolished. And it’s not as if the current stadium is nice in the first place–there’s a reason it’s being replaced–so spending $100+ million to fix it feels like putting very expensive lipstick on a pig…that you plan on turning into bacon. For Walt Disney World fans, it would’ve been the equivalent of Dino-Rama getting a pricey reimagining themed to “The Good Dinosaur” a few years ago only to be demolished for Tropical Americas. Same idea.
Once I got past my initial knuckleheaded idea about tearing off the existing roof and realized a replacement venue was going to be necessary, my head immediately went to one place. And you’ve probably already guessed it given the title of this post. The Stadium at the ESPN Wide World of Sports in Walt Disney World.
Topkin’s article in TampaBay.com runs through all of the possible options, and assesses the likelihood of each. This includes the possibility of the Rays playing games at their spring training facility in Port Charlotte, but that’s only a 7,500 capacity park. Another possibility is Durham at their Triple-A facility, but that would require evicting the Durham Bulls and, I assume, Kevin Costner.
Several other Spring Training facilities will likely be considered due to their proximity to Tampa and capacity, including St. Petersburg’s Al Lang Stadium, Clearwater’s BayCare Ballpark (Phillies), Dunedin’s TD Ballpark (Blue Jays) and Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field (Yankees). There’s precedent for using Spring Training facilities–the Blue Jays did it during the COVID era.
Although I love baseball, I don’t really care about any of those venues. I’m not a big enough fan to know anything about those venues. What I wanted to know is whether Topkin thought the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Walt Disney World was even a potential option. And guess what? He did.
That was all I needed to see–confirmation that The Stadium at the ESPN Wide World of Sports is, indeed, viewed as viable.
From my perspective, and I say this as someone who is totally unbiased, Walt Disney World is the only logical choice. Okay okay, the most logical choice. (Is that more fair and balanced?!) It makes sense that Walt Disney World is in the running. The Stadium has 9,500 seats, including four luxury sky boxes, open-air suites, and patios. It’s a relatively modern and well-maintained venue, having been built in 1997 and kept up to Walt Disney World standards. (It’s certainly nicer than the Trop, if memory serves me.)
Various baseball writers point out the problems with all outdoor venues in Florida. The insane heat and the likelihood of rain delays, which could make it extremely difficult to play in and draw fans to the ballpark. The first part of this is definitely true. Summers in Central Florida are no picnic.
But the second part is not. To paraphrase something Kevin Costner once heard, if Major League Baseball relocates the Rays to Walt Disney World, they (fans) will come.
Frankly, the Rays might be a bigger draw at Walt Disney World than they are in Tampa! Even when the team has been good, attendance hasn’t exactly been stellar. There are a number of reasons for this, but one of the biggest might be demographics–the number of transplants in the Sunshine State, especially older ones.
When we lived in Central Florida, the Rays played in (and lost) the World Series, and there still were far fewer Rays fans in our neighborhood than Yankees, Braves, Red Sox, etc. Baseball fans skew older, and many who relocate to Florida already have teams. I’m not that old (by baseball fan standards), and I never became a Rays fan.
The great thing about playing at Walt Disney World is that it doesn’t need to cater to Tampa Bay Rays fans. It’s close enough that they can attend–sure, whatever. But that’s not the point. Walt Disney World has a steady stream of Yankees, Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, Tigers, etc., fans. Just think how many team hats/shirts/jerseys/etc. you’ve seen in the parks. I can tell you with complete confidence that, on any given day, the most represented teams in guest apparel at Walt Disney World are not from Florida. (With possible exceptions for the Heat, Lightning, and Panthers on weekends during the playoffs.)
This is a lesson that other leagues have already learned with Las Vegas and Los Angeles.
If you watch a Raiders game (I’m sorry) and the camera pans to the stands, you’ll notice the vast majority of fans in attendance are for the away team. Ditto the Rams and Chargers, and that’s despite both having more history in Southern California (where more football fans are, ironically, Raiders fans).
The point is that the leagues have realized Las Vegas and Los Angeles are destination cities, and they don’t need a passionate local fanbase to sustain the teams. To the contrary, that having these serve as ‘hubs’ of sorts for the leagues is good for the health of the sports, even if it’s not great for the individual franchises.
As you’re undoubtedly aware given that you’re reading a website about Disney tourism, Walt Disney World is also a vacation destination. And one that brings families with young children instead of, well, I’ll bite my tongue about Las Vegas visitor demographics. (They do host conventions–but so too does Walt Disney World.) It’s not like I’m even the first one to have this idea–permanently relocating the Rays to Orlando might be a good idea, period.
As noted above, the average age of Major League Baseball fans skews older. Although Shohei Ohtani and recent rule changes have helped baseball to some degree and attendance is stabilizing, the MLB still has long-term problems and an uncertain future. There are not enough new fans replacing the older ones who are dying off. (Not a joke.)
Imagine having Mickey Mouse throw out the first pitch, Elsa sing the national anthem, and Slinky Dog dash around the stadium during the seventh inning stretch. Do you know what that would do to reinvigorate the game?! Just look at what Grimace has done for the Mets. GRIMACE! He’s not even a real thing–just like a purple blob of congealed grape milkshake or something.
I’m not saying having a team at Walt Disney World would magically solve all of MLB’s woes, but it would certainly help–and do a lot more good than having a team in Tampa, even with a brand-new stadium. Signed, someone who became a lifelong baseball fan after watching the Braves play Spring Training games at Walt Disney World in the 1990s and whose favorite restaurant as a kid was All Star Cafe (bring that back while we’re at it).
Oh, and if this idea is unreasonable for whatever reason, the only other logical choice is Montreal. That city deserves Major League Baseball again. (Sorry, Oakland fans, you don’t deserve the fate that befell you, but that city also doesn’t deserve a team right now–and this one makes more sense in Canada, anyway.)
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Would you like to see the Rays relocate to Walt Disney World? If the team did, would your family attend a game while on vacation? Are you a fan of Major League Baseball, or are you under 80 years old? Thoughts on any of the other options, roof replacement cost, or anything else discussed here? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
