Getty Image / Scott Taetsch
Does anyone else feel like multiple professional teams are up for sale at once? It certainly seems that way after reports claim the Tampa Bay Rays are up for sale.
They’ve been red hot this season as they currently hold first place in the AL East.
Even so, the franchise is up for grabs and depending on who buys the team, the Rays could be on their way out of Tampa Bay.
According to Ken Rosenthal, there are a handful of potential buyers for the organization. One of which is Tampa Bay native Dan Doyle Jr., who is the current CEO of DEX Imaging.
However, reports indicate that there are several ownership groups in the running to purchase the Rays and the latest update suggests if a sale goes down with one of them, the team would be moving out of Tampa Bay.
“The team also is drawing interest from groups that would relocate the club to one of the cities that is a candidate for major-league expansion.”
The Rays are currently trying to okay to build a $1.2 billion ballpark. But things have been complicated, to say the least.
Additionally, The Athletic reports that the current negotiations to build that ballpark is the desired route for current owner Stuart Sternberg.
But at the same time, “the Rays would want money from the city and/or county. The state of Florida likely would not contribute; Gov. Ron DeSantis opposes using taxpayer dollars to build sports facilities for professional teams.”
So, with that in mind, some of the potential new owners could opt to relocate the team if they win the bidding war.
Keep an eye out for new updates regarding the Rays sale process. With the Oakland A’s trying to finalize a deal to move to Las Vegas, perhaps we watch the Rays do something similar.