Rays to open third deck at the Trop during Longoria's legacy weekend
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KANSAS CITY -- Anticipating large crowds as they honor franchise icon Evan Longoria during the final series before the All-Star break, the Rays are opening the upper deck at Tropicana Field for Longo’s Legacy Weekend.
The club announced Wednesday night that tickets in the Trop’s upper deck will be available for their games against the Mariners from July 10-12. It will be the first time the upper level at Tropicana Field has been open since the American League Wild Card Series against the Rangers in 2023.
The upper-deck seats available for purchase will be in sections 300-312, on both the first- and third-base sides of the ballpark.
“We are excited to celebrate Evan Longoria’s significant contributions to our organization,” Rays chief business officer Bill Walsh said in a statement. “Opening the upper deck allows more fans to join us for this historic moment and contribute to what will surely be an electric atmosphere at Tropicana Field.”
Regarded as the greatest player in franchise history, Longoria will be inducted into the Rays Hall of Fame during a pregame ceremony on Saturday, July 11. His No. 3 jersey will be retired before Sunday’s game, and Longoria will take the field with his walk-up song, “Down And Out” by Tantric, played live at the ballpark.
The Rays have plenty more in store for the weekend, and they unveiled a few more details on Wednesday.
For one, they will use specially branded Longo’s Legacy Weekend baseballs in the games throughout the weekend. The balls show Longoria’s No. 3 and a silhouette of his iconic walk-off celebration to end Game 162 in 2011.
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On July 10, the Rays will launch the Devil Rays Deal for every Friday home game at Tropicana Field. Fans who purchase those tickets will receive $10 in “Burst Bucks” via the Rays Wallet in the MLB Ballpark app to spend toward concessions or merchandise at the ballpark.
In addition to planned giveaways on July 11 (a Longoria snapback hat for the first 10,000 fans) and July 12 (a Longoria bobblecard for the first 10,000 fans), the weekend will also feature exclusive giveaway posters created by award-winning illustrator Rob Zilla. The first 5,000 fans at each game that weekend will receive one of three unique posters, and fans who collect all three can combine them into a design featuring Longoria.