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| Your Ballpark Guide |
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Tropicana Field / Tampa Bay Devil Rays
| Year Opened | 1990 |
| Capacity | 45,000 |
| Dimensions | 315L, 410LC, 404C, 370RC, 322R |
| Surface | FieldTurf with dirt infield |
| League | American League |
| Level | Major league |
| Web Site | www.devilrays.com |
| Online Broadcasts | Yes |
| Online Ticket Sales | Yes |
| Phone | 888-326-7297 |
| Address | One Tropicana Drive, St. Petersburg |
| History |
The facility was known as the Thunderdome in 19930-1996 when it served as home to the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning. It was renamed Tropicana Dome in 1996, and at that time it underwent a serious expansion that included newer and wider concourses; the Cuesta-Ray Cigar Bar; a center-field restaurant; the Budweiser Bew House; a rock-climbing wall; and a food court featuring food from local restaurants.
It may not be apparent at first glance, but there are two elements in Tropicana Field that hearken back to Brooklyn's Ebbets Field. The first is an eight-story rotunda entrance designed from the same blueprints used to create Ebbets Field's legendary rotunda. The second, which was purely accidents, is that the asymmetrical outfield layout closely resembles the outfield layout at Ebbets Field.
| News |
St.
Petersburg Times: Rays look beyond baseball
Posted October 26, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
Attendance at
Tampa Bay Devil Rays is down 53 percent since 1998, but Vincent Naimoli and
the Devil Rays ownership say that the team is in solid financial shape --
and their optimism is evidenced by the signing of Lou Pinella to a
managerial contract beginning next season. The team's finances are also
bolstered by their exclusive lease at Tropicana Field, where the Rays rent
space to 40 non-baseball events in the offseason, ranging from proms to car
shows.
St.
Petersburg Times: Trop on sale for $1 to avoid huge tax bill
Posted September 20, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
Want to buy a major-league ballpark? Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay
Devil Rays, is being offered for sale to Pinellas County by the city of St.
Petersburg. The city would then lease the facility back from the county. In
Florida, city-owned facilities are not exempt from property taxes -- but
county-owned facilities are exempt -- so this is a way for the city
and the Devil Rays to avoid $1.4 million in property taxes.
CP:
Expos beat Padres 4-0 in possibly the final baseball game in Montreal
Posted August 20, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
If the players go on strike and end the season, and
if baseball officials move to the team to the Washington, D.C., area, then
the Expos will have played their last game in Olympic Stadium, before a
crowd of 8,266. I don't think the players will strike and I don't think
the Expos will move until 2004, so this may be a premature memorial. Meanwhile,
a Florida columnist also warns that the Tropicana Dome may have seen its
final MLB game. I still think that if contraction happens, the Devil
Rays and the Marlins are now the most likeliest candidates.
Lakeland
Ledger: Naimoli sets the record straight
Posted August 2, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
Devil Rays managing partner Vincent Naimoli says that the team is not in
financial trouble and has not been in danger of missing payroll, despite
what Bud Selig says. One indication that he's telling the truth: the Devil
Rays did nothing at trade deadline to dump payroll. The St.
Petersburg Times has a similar story.
AP:
Baseball's contraction decision postponed again
Posted August 2, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
Arbitrator Shyam Das asked for another extension as he decides whether
major-league baseball has the power to contract teams without the approval
of the players. This may be a moot decision, despite what Bud Selig thinks:
the Twins are committed to Minnesota for 2003, the Devil Rays are committed
to Tropicana Dome for 20-some-more years, and there's no indication Jeffrey
Loria wants to fold the Marlins.
News
& Observer: If there's a strike, fans should riot
Posted July 28, 2002 (feedback)
(submit story)
A fan calls for "a European-style soccer riot" If the owners and
players fail to resolve their differences without a strike. Here's where
the man bites the dog: the fan is George Habel, vice president/baseball
clubs of Capitol Broadcasting Co. and general manager of the Durham Bulls,
the class AAA farm team of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.