From torn roof to roaring crowd: October returns to the Trop

ST. PETERSBURG -- The last time Tropicana Field was in the national spotlight was nearly two years ago. Roof open and ripped apart, pieces scattered around the exposed field and seating area, the dome stood as the most visible symbol of the destruction and devastation that Hurricane Milton inflicted upon the Tampa Bay area and throughout Florida.

Recovery did not come quickly for the region, with so many people who lost so much after back-to-back hurricanes battered the Gulf Coast in late September/early October 2024, nor did it come easily for the Rays’ home ballpark.

It took time. It took a tremendous amount of work. It took a season of Major League Baseball being played outdoors at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, the Yankees’ Spring Training ballpark that became the Rays’ temporary home in 2025.

But the Trop is back, and when Drew Rasmussen takes the mound just before 6:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, the center of the baseball universe will reside under its recently rebuilt roof.

• Yankees-Rays ALDS Game 1 FAQ

In Game 1 of the American League Division Series, Tropicana Field will play host to the AL’s two best teams, the Rays and Yankees. It will be, somewhat shockingly, the first postseason game played between the two AL East powers at this ballpark. And it will be as packed as it’s been in years, with the upper deck open and a sold-out crowd anticipated.

“A lot of meaning,” Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander said. “There's nothing like 2008, when you have that first time validating that an organization can win, right? That was a really special year. I think this one's right up there with it, though, for all that's come with this.

“All the disruption to this building, all the uncertainty, not knowing what was ahead, playing in Steinbrenner last year and just making the most of it, our guys just going out every day, competing, trying to get better [and] our community doing the same in their respective lives … to do it in this building, with all that behind it, there's just another level of meaning that comes with all that.”

It was Oct. 9, 2024, when Hurricane Milton tore across Florida’s Gulf Coast, causing significant damage to Tropicana Field. Many wondered if there would ever be baseball played here again, and the Rays anxiously waited to see where they’d land before learning they would play a sweaty season at Steinbrenner Field just across the bay.

Incredibly, the Trop’s tilted roof was restored about 13 months later. Contractors and staff were completing indoor repairs and touch-ups the morning of the Rays’ home opener against the Cubs on April 6, but baseball returned to Tampa Bay’s home ballpark since the Devil Rays’ inaugural season in 1998.

There have been some changes. It’s brighter during the day, the result of the new roof not having a second layer beneath it. While moving to secure the franchise’s “Forever Home” ballpark in Tampa, the Rays’ new ownership group invested in upgrades to the ballpark and fan experience.

They expanded the scoreboard and installed a new sound system. Between their regular-season home finale and this week’s pre-ALDS workouts, they attached multi-color, flashing lights to each handrail. They found several occasions to open parts of the upper deck and topped 25,000 in attendance four times.

Saturday’s crowd should be even bigger. While the Rays haven’t announced a sellout, it is expected to be a capacity crowd for Game 1. And anyone who has witnessed the Trop with a packed house can attest to the atmosphere it creates.

It gets loud. Really loud.

“It's the loudest building I've ever heard,” Rasmussen said, thinking back to when the Rays hosted the Red Sox in the 2021 ALDS. “Trying to get young guys ready, because it's one of the coolest experiences they're going to have up to this point. Ultimately, just excited for them to get to see it packed out.”

The Yankees are hardly strangers to the Trop and all its quirks, with their veterans having played here for many years and their rookies getting acclimated during the regular season. But the catwalks, artificial playing surface and other unusual design elements can have an effect on visiting teams.

That can also work in the home team’s favor. It certainly did this season, as the Rays matched the Brewers for the Majors’ best home record, at 55-26.

“Felt it throughout the season and hopeful it will continue to feel that way,” manager Kevin Cash said. “There's no doubt, at certain points of the season, there was genuine excitement to get back to the Trop, get back to playing in front of our fans. … There is an energy, and we're looking forward to that energy.”