TAMPA, Fla. -- Seated between co-chair Bill Cosgrove and chief executive officer Ken Babby, Rays managing partner Patrick Zalupski made the new ownership group’s top priorities clear early on in his first public comments since officially purchasing the team last week.
“This moment is not just about ownership. It's about stewardship,” Zalupski said during a 30-minute introductory press conference on Tuesday morning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. “We recognize the deep responsibility we now carry to deliver a championship-caliber team on the field and a world-class experience for our fans.”
Zalupski, Cosgrove, Babby and their partners believe building a new ballpark as part of a massive, mixed-use development in the Tampa Bay area will help the team achieve both of those goals. They also recognize the importance of building on the foundation laid by former principal owner Stuart Sternberg, who oversaw the franchise’s transformation from the struggling Devil Rays into the innovative, competitive Rays.
“The organization is wonderful. The culture is wonderful. The people are just world-class, and we're excited, really, to be a part of it,” Cosgrove said. “We understand that it's all about winning on the field, winning in the community, and that's what we intend to do.”
“We're here to help add value where we can,” added Babby. “The same is said on the business side of the organization. We plan to continue that same championship culture while we recognize we have incredible work ahead of us.”
And they don’t intend to interfere with the leadership of president of baseball operations Erik Neander and manager Kevin Cash, who were in attendance on Tuesday along with other Rays executives and public officials, including Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch.
Specifically, Zalupski said the new ownership group has already imposed a rule upon itself.
“None of us and none of the partners are allowed to talk to or have any influence on baseball operations,” he said, smiling.
“Zero,” Cosgrove added for emphasis. As Babby put it later: “In Erik and Kevin we trust.”
“These guys are exceptional,” Zalupski continued. “I think we can provide a lot of help on the business side, sponsorship, growing our community outreach, fan experience, and we're excited to get to work on that.”
With the deal closed and their long-awaited introduction over, that work is now underway.
The new owners’ immediate focus will be on finding a ballpark to call home when their use agreement at Tropicana Field expires after the 2028 season. That is why they identified securing a long-term home as their top priority -- and the reason most of the questions they fielded for nearly 20 minutes on Tuesday were about that search.
“The economics of the club have not changed since we acquired it,” Zalupski said. “You'll hear a common theme, obviously: We've got to create this development. We have to have the revenue. It's critical to our success. Continuing what we've done? These guys have done an incredible job -- I mean, blown away. The more I learn from Erik and Kevin, we have an incredible organization.”
Babby, who will lead the club’s day-to-day operations, said the Rays’ focus off the field is to “make baseball a fun and unforgettable experience,” prioritizing accessibility, affordability and lifelong memories for fans, friends and families.
“Baseball provides the perfect platform in life to do that. It's exactly why we're here,” he said. “We will create a world-class fan experience here in Tampa Bay for our fans, and we will do it one at a time in incredibly unique ways.”
As previously reported, the ownership group established an executive advisory board that includes Dr. Rick Workman, the Hertz family, Will Weatherford, Robert Skinner, Dan Doyle Jr. and Matt Silverman, who will represent the interests of Sternberg and his partners, along with independent board member Fred Ridley.
On Tuesday, the Rays revealed the following limited partners “with deep connections to the Tampa Bay region” who have joined the ownership group: Shane Battier, Walt and Teri Bettinger, Brett Berish, David J. Bronczek and Matthew Bronczek and family, Henry and Jennifer Brown, the Friedkin family, Jeff Hills, Mori Hosseini, the Johnson family, Chris LaFace, Mark Metheny, the Mitzner family, Larry and Brett Morgan, Mike Murphy, Willy Nunn, the O’Steen family, Sidd Pagidipati, Augie Ribeiro, the Rossman family, Andy Sandler/Temerity Baseball, Jack Shields, the Stahl family, the Thomas family, Tom Wallace, Drew Weatherford and John Williams.
“We've brought together an incredible, special local group of partners that we believe will help us continue to cement the right relationships to be successful,” Babby said.