The Tampa Bay Rays are back in the playoff hunt, and Major League Baseball suddenly seems nervous. Not because the league dislikes underdog stories or elite run prevention. But because the Rays might actually host postseason games in a minor league park with a major league problem: it only seats 10,046 people.
Let’s be clear—this wasn’t a problem for MLB in May when the Rays bottomed out in the standings.
When the roof blew off Tropicana Field last fall due to hurricane Milton, the Rays were quietly ushered into Steinbrenner Field, the Yankees’ spring training home across the bay in Tampa. Nobody at the league office batted an eye. But now that the Rays have surged to the top of the AL Wild Card standings with the best record in baseball since May 8, MLB is scrambling. Apparently, a team winning in a stadium with fewer seats than a college gymnasium is fine—until October money comes into play.
MLB’s Postseason Panic Button
According to The Athletic, MLB and the Rays have reportedly opened “preliminary conversations” about what to do if Tampa Bay makes the playoffs. That phrase might as well be code for “we’re in trouble.” The league is concerned about broadcast logistics, media overflow, and the fact that it reserves thousands of postseason tickets for sponsors, players, and partners. That’s not ideal when 75% of your stadium capacity is already spoken for.
But the real issue here is money. Postseason gate receipts go directly into the players’ pool; smaller crowds mean smaller checks. According to MLB rules, 60% of the gate from guaranteed playoff games (the first two of the Wild Card round, the first three of the Division Series, etc.) is split among players. That number shrinks fast when you’re playing in front of 10,000 people instead of 40,000.
Of course, Rays playoff games at the Trop weren’t exactly hot tickets either. In 2023, they barely cracked 20,000 in either Wild Card loss to Texas. But even that’s double what Steinbrenner Field can hold.
Suddenly, It’s a Problem
So why is MLB just now making noise about this? Because it didn’t think the Rays would be here.
Tampa Bay’s playoff odds were under 38% before the season. Now they’re over 70%. Since May 19, they’ve gone 16-5 at Steinbrenner Field, turning a spring training facility into a fortress. And Ha-Seong Kim is coming back soon to boost a lineup that’s been winning despite patchwork depth.
The league backloaded Tampa Bay’s schedule to get them out of the Florida summer heat—meaning they’ll be road warriors down the stretch—but it may be too late to stop them. They’re within a game of the Yankees and have proven they can win anywhere. That makes the idea of hosting October games in a one-deck stadium with 29 press box seats and obstructed TV camera angles a very real possibility.
Welcome to the Postseason—Sort Of
MLB’s unofficial Plan B would be moving Rays home games to a neutral site. Some venues have floated like LoanDepot Park in Miami or Truist Park in Atlanta. But that would rob the Rays of the very advantage they earned—home field advantage.
Would attendance improve? Maybe. Would the broadcasts look better? Possibly. But from the Rays’ perspective—and their fans—it would be a slap in the face. They’ve sold out 42 of 50 games at Steinbrenner Field this year. They’ve turned lemons into lemonade. And now the league wants to take the glass away?
There’s irony in that the team most famous for doing more with less is being told they’re too small for the big stage. A franchise that’s managed to win with one of baseball’s smallest payrolls is now being punished for having one of its smallest ballparks.
If It’s Broke, Fix the Money—Not the Rays
It’s not the Rays’ fault that Tropicana Field lost its roof, that its owner wouldn’t pay for a better one, or that MLB only started caring when their winning got inconvenient.
But if Tampa Bay makes the playoffs, and if they earn the right to play in front of their fans—even if there’s only 10,000 of them—then the league should let it happen. Because the only thing more embarrassing than a tiny postseason crowd is a billion-dollar industry that didn’t care until it hurt the bottom line.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post MLB Is Suddenly Worried About the Rays appeared first on Heavy Sports.