Rays ratchet up Hurricane Milton relief help, find temporary office for ops

ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays and the City of St. Petersburg are continuing to assess the significant damage that Hurricane Milton dealt to Tropicana Field, a process that is expected to take several weeks and will likely determine where they spend at least part of next season.

In the meantime, the Rays are finding ways to move forward with their internal operations and charitable work in a community battered by back-to-back hurricanes.

On Wednesday, the club announced that it secured temporary office space for its front office staff in a building near Tropicana Field. The staff has been working remotely since Hurricane Milton swept through Florida on Oct. 9, but they expect to complete an office move by mid-November to a space at 800 2nd Ave. S., just east of the Trop.

“We are eager to bring our organization back together under one roof,” team president Matt Silverman said in a statement. “We have work to do and new challenges to meet as we prepare for Opening Day 2025 next March.”

Previously the headquarters of United Insurance Holdings Corp., the building was sold in 2022 to Third Lake Partners. It’s also just outside the site of the planned Historic Gas Plant District, the redeveloped area that will include Tampa Bay’s new ballpark and team offices as well as office, retail and residential space. The Rays’ $1.3 billion ballpark is expected to be ready for Opening Day in 2028.

“We always want to be a good neighbor and are delighted to help the Rays while Tropicana Field is assessed,” said Luke Thomas, managing partner at Third Lake Partners, in a statement. “We purchased the property to be part of the exciting redevelopment project and are supportive of the Rays, City and County efforts.”

Meanwhile, the Rays have been doing their part to assist with debris cleanup and food distribution around the Tampa Bay area following Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

The Rays have nearly 100 staff members volunteering with local non-profit organizations throughout the community this week. They were spread between two events on Tuesday, with one group (including radio broadcaster Neil Solondz) helping clean up debris from Hurricane Milton at the Girls Inc. of Pinellas in Pinellas Park, while another group (joined by pitchers Pete Fairbanks, Colin Poche, Kevin Kelly and Ryan Pepiot) assisted Feeding Tampa Bay while distributing food from their mobile pantry outside Tropicana Field.

“Our staff, they always step up to the challenge. Anytime the community’s in need, our staff asks, ‘How can we help?’” said David Egles, executive director of the Rays Baseball Foundation. “We’ve been out here every day this week, and we’ll continue to do so the rest of the week. … It’s so important. We’re all in this together. The community’s not alone. We’re here to help however we can.”

Following coverage of the storm, Fairbanks admitted he felt “just kind of disbelief” when he saw what happened to Tropicana Field’s roof. Kelly called it “shocking,” “devastating” and “heart-dropping” to see video showing pieces of the dome waving in the wind. And Pepiot, whose apartment has a view of the ballpark, said it was “pretty somber, pretty sad to drive past it.”

“There’s a lot of unknowns and a lot of questions that nobody has the answers to, but just hoping that something good can come of it,” Pepiot said.

“It’s strange. That place holds a special place in our heart,” Poche added. “To see it in the condition it is now, the roof and everything, was pretty sad. Hopefully we can get back in there at some point.”

Poche acknowledged that they were fortunate, in the grand scheme of things, considering how many people lost so much more over the past month. He, his teammates and Rays staff volunteered to help Feeding Tampa Bay on Tuesday, handing out canned goods, food and pet supplies for people in a drive-thru line outside their damaged ballpark.

“The people here are the ones that support us, and they come to watch us play and cheer us on. So the only thing we can do is just come and give back,” Pepiot said. “We might have been fortunate to not lose anything or go out just barely unscathed, but some people might have lost their entire lives. They lost their entire home, everything they’ve built up for years and years, and this is the least we can do. Any way we can help, we’re here to help.”