Report: Rays owner under pressure to sell team

Commissioner Rob Manfred and multiple team owners have run out of patience with the Tampa Bay Rays for their inability to work out a new stadium arrangement in St. Petersburg, and are pressuring owner Stu Sternberg to sell the team, the Athletic reported Sunday.

The report listed the Edward DeBartolo Jr. family, some of whose members own the San Francisco 49ers, and Tampa businessman Dan Doyle Jr. as prospective buyers. Doyle was the lead investor for a group that pursued the team previously before withdrawing from the process in 2023.

Doyle could not be reached for comment, nor could Joe Molloy, a former minority owner of the New York Yankees who is reportedly part of the DeBartolo effort. MLB declined to comment, the Athletic reported.

Reached Sunday, Sternberg said he is "interested to read about what industry partners have told you about our franchise and its future."

After nearly two decades of pursuing a new stadium in St. Petersburg, Sternberg and the city have focused on a $1.3 billion proposal for a new stadium at the site of Tropicana Field, which was severely damaged by Hurricane Milton last year.

The team's home games this season, and perhaps beyond, will be played in Tampa, at the Yankees' minor league complex.

Sternberg reportedly is balking at fulfilling several obligations toward the proposal. For example, while the team planned to provide $700 million to the stadium, Sternberg is blaming the county for a delay in the process that is raising costs.

Getting the team settled in the area takes on extra importance for Manfred, according to the report, because doing so would leave cities like Nashville and Portland, Ore., as potential sites for expansion rather than a new home for the Rays.

Pinellas County commissioner Chris Latvala, who is a critic of Sternberg, envisions the owner selling.

"If Stu walks away from this deal, I think the owners and Major League Baseball will see that he either has an unwillingness to do a new stadium in Tampa Bay, or he has a financial issue that prevents him from doing a new stadium in Tampa Bay and there needs to be an ownership change."

It's not a matter of money, Rays president Matt Silverman said.

"It's not a question of whether we have the funds. We do. The question is whether it's a good use of those funds to commit us and MLB to this ballpark for the next 30 years," Silverman said.

--Field Level Media