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The Tampa Bay Rays will play their 2025 home games at the New York Yankees‘ nearby spring training ballpark amid uncertainty about the future of hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field, Rays executives told The Associated Press.

Stuart Sternberg, the Rays’ principal owner, said in an interview that Steinbrenner Field in Tampa is the best fit for the team and its fanbase. At about 11,000 seats, it’s also the largest of the spring training sites in Florida.

“It is singularly the best opportunity for our fans to experience 81 games of major league Rays baseball,” Sternberg said. “As difficult as it is to get any of these stadiums up to major league standards, it was the least difficult. You’re going to see Major League Baseball in a small environment.”

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said the Rays-Yankees deal is good for the sport and the Tampa Bay region.

“This outcome meets Major League Baseball‘s goals that Rays fans will see their team play next season in their home market and that their players can remain home without disruption to their families,” Manfred said in a news release.

The Rays’ home since 1998, the domed Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg was hit hard by Hurricane Milton on Oct. 9, with most of its fabric roof shredded and water damage inside. The city of St. Petersburg, which owns the Trop, released an assessment of the damage and repair needs that estimated the cost at $55.7 milliion if it is to be ready for the start of the 2026 season.

The work would have to be approved by the city council, which earlier this year voted for a new $1.3 billion, 30,000-seat stadium to replace Tropicana Field beginning in 2028. The new stadium is part of a much larger urban revitalization project known as the Historic Gas Plant District — named for the Black community that once occupied the 86 acres (34 hectares) that includes retail, office and hotel space; a Black history museum; and restaurants and bars.

Amid all the uncertainty, the Rays know one thing: they will play 2025 in a smallish, outdoor ballpark operated by one of their main American League East division rivals. A ballpark with a facade mimicking that of Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and festooned with plaques of Yankee players whose numbers have been retired.

Brian Auld, the Rays co-president, said in an interview that Tampa Bay has to be ready for a regular-season MLB game March 27 against the Colorado Rockies, just three days after the Yankees break training camp.

“There will be a ton of work toward putting in our brand,” Auld said. “The term we like to use for that is “Rayful’ into Steinbrenner Field.”

It will also come with some weather challenges in the hot, rainy Florida summer climate the Rays didn’t worry about in their domed ballpark. The Rays averaged about 16,500 fans per game during the 2024 season.

The Yankees will receive about $15 million in revenue for hosting the Rays, a person familiar with the arrangement told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because that detail was not announced. The money won’t come from Tampa Bay but from other sources, such as insurance.

Once known as Legends Field, Steinbrenner Field opened in 1996 on Tampa’s north side. It is named for longtime Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who ran a shipbuilding company in Tampa and died at his home there in 2010. One of his sons, Yankees executive Hal Steinbrenner, was instrumental in getting the deal done with the Rays, Sternberg said.

“This is a heavy lift for the Yankees. This is a huge ask by us and baseball of the Yankees,” Sternberg said. “[Hal Steinbrenner] did not waver for one second. I couldn’t have been more grateful.”

Hal Steinbrenner said in a news release that the Yankees are “happy to extend our hand to the Rays” and noted that the team and his family have “deep roots” in the Tampa Bay area.

“In times like these, rivalry and competition take a back seat to doing what’s right for our community, which is continuing to help families and businesses rebound from the devastation caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton,” he said.

The Tampa Tarpons, one of the Yankees minor-league teams, play their home games at Steinbrenner Field during the summer. They will use baseball diamonds elsewhere in the training complex this season.

It’s not the first time a big league team will host regular season games in a spring training stadium. The Toronto Blue Jays played part of the 2021 season at their facility in Dunedin because of Canadian government restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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A detailed assessment of the hurricane damage to Tropicana Field concludes that the home of the Tampa Bay Rays is structurally sound and can be repaired for about $55.7 million in time for the 2026 season.

The 412-page report released Tuesday by the City of St. Petersburg, which owns the building, found that the basic structure of the domed stadium “does not appear to have been adversely affected” by Hurricane Milton’s winds, which shredded most of its fabric roof.

“The primary structure is serviceable and capable of supporting a replacement tension membrane fabric roof,” said the report by Hennessy Construction Services.

Eighteen of the ballpark’s 24 fabric panels failed when Milton roared ashore Oct. 9, the report found. There was also damage to interior parts of the Trop, as it’s known for short, from rainwater and other storm-related causes. The ballpark opened in 1990 and has been the Rays’ home since their inception in 1998.

Tropicana Field is already scheduled to be demolished when a new, $1.3 billion ballpark is finished in time for the 2028 season. With unforeseen costs to the city and Pinellas County from two hurricanes — vast amounts of debris removal, damage to parks and infrastructure — two of the main financial sources for the new ballpark could reconsider those plans or decide not to repair the Trop at all.

The St. Petersburg City Council will discuss the report at its Nov. 21 meeting.

“We have so much need across the city,” said council member Brandi Gabbard at a meeting last week. “I love the Rays. I love Tropicana Field. It’s not about not wanting to do this. It’s about a balance of priorities.”

The council recently approved $6.5 million to clean up the ballpark and protect it from any further damage, including waterproofing areas such as the press box, seating areas and scoreboard.

The city does have an insurance claim for the damage and repairs, but it includes a $22 million deductible and probably would only cover part of the overall costs. That means taxpayer dollars would have to be used.

The Rays did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment. Since the ballpark under this damage and repair assessment would not be ready until the 2026 season, the Rays must find another place to play next year.

Major League Baseball wants the Rays to remain in the area near their fanbase if at all possible, with several Tampa Bay-area spring training sites suggested. These include ballparks in Clearwater (Phillies), Tampa (Yankees), Dunedin (Blue Jays), Sarasota (Orioles), Lakeland (Tigers) and the Rays’ own spring training home in Port Charlotte. Most of these locations host minor league teams during summer.

The planned new Rays ballpark is part of a $6.5 billion project that will include affordable housing, a Black history museum, retail and office space, restaurants and bars. The project is known as the Historic Gas Plant District, which was once a thriving Black community displaced by construction of the ballpark and an interstate highway.

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Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is a finalist for his first National League MVP award after winning the AL honor twice, joined among the top three in NL voting by New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor and Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte.

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge is a finalist for his second American League MVP in three seasons, joined by Kansas City shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and Yankees outfielder Juan Soto.

Ohtani was unanimously voted the AL MVP in 2021 and 2023 as a two-way star for the Los Angeles Angels and finished second to Judge in 2022 voting. He didn’t pitch in 2024 following elbow surgery and signed a record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers.

Ohtani would join Frank Robinson for Cincinnati in 1961 and Baltimore in 1966 as the only players to win the MVP award in both leagues.

Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes is a finalist in balloting for the NL Cy Young Award and NL Rookie of the Year. The 22-year-old right-hander becomes the fifth rookie to finish among the top three in Cy Young Award voting, after Mark Fidrych (1976), Fernando Valenzuela (1981), Dwight Gooden (1984) and José Fernández (2013). The only one to win both in the same year was Valenzuela in the National League.

Ohtani hit .310, stole 59 bases and led the NL with 54 homers and 130 RBIs exclusively as a designated hitter, becoming the first player with 50 or more homers and 50 or more stolen bases in a season. He helped the Dodgers to the World Series title, playing the final three games with a torn labrum in his left shoulder.

Ohtani would become the first primary DH to win an MVP award.

The top three finishers in voting for each of the major individual awards presented annually by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America were announced Monday night on MLB Network. Winners will be revealed next week.

Balloting is conducted before the postseason.

Ohtani would become the 12th player with three or more MVPs, joining Barry Bonds (seven) and Jimmie Foxx, Joe DiMaggio, Stan Musial, Roy Campanella, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, Mike Schmidt, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols and Mike Trout (three each).

Lindor batted .273 with 33 homers, 91 RBIs and 29 steals, while Marte hit .292 with 36 homers and 95 RBIs.

Judge led the major leagues with 58 homers, 144 RBIs and 133 walks while hitting .322. Witt topped the big leagues with a .332 average, hitting 32 homers with 109 RBIs. Soto batted .288 with 41 homers and 109 RBIs.

Atlanta’s Chris Sale and Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler are NL Cy Young Award finalists along with Skenes, who made his big league debut May 11 and went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA in 23 starts, striking out 170 in 133 innings.

Detroit’s Tarik Skubal, Kansas City’s Seth Lugo and Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase are the finalists for the AL honor. Clase becomes the first reliever to finish among the top three in voting since San Diego’s Trevor Hoffman came in second in 2006 NL balloting.

Padres outfielder Jackson Merrill and Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio joined Skenes as finalists for NL Rookie of the Year. Yankees right-hander Luis Gil and catcher Austin Wells are AL finalists along with Baltimore outfielder Colton Cowser.

Cleveland’s Stephen Vogt, Kansas City’s Matt Quatraro and Detroit’s A.J. Hinch are finalists for AL Manager of the Year. The three NL finalists were all first-year managers with their teams: the Mets’ Carlos Mendoza, Milwaukee’s Pat Murphy and San Diego’s Mike Shildt.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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The Miami Marlins are hiring former Los Angeles Dodgers first-base coach Clayton McCullough as their next manager, a person with knowledge of the hiring told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement hadn’t been announced. ESPN first reported the hiring.

McCullough, 44, was hired by the Dodgers in 2015 as their minor league field coordinator and had been the first-base coach on Dave Roberts’ staff since the 2021 season. The Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees in five games last month to win their eighth World Series title.

A former minor league catcher, McCullough was a manager in the Blue Jays’ minor league system for seven seasons.

He takes the job previously held by 2023 NL Manager of the Year Skip Schumaker, who parted ways with the team in September after just two seasons. The Marlins went 146-178 under Schumaker, who was hired in 2022.

McCullough, a Greenville, North Carolina, native, spent one season at Vanderbilt before transferring to East Carolina University. He was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 22nd round in 2002 and played in their minor league system from 2002-2005.

The Marlins also considered former Cleveland Guardians bench coach Craig Albernaz and Will Venable, a former associate manager for Texas. Venable was hired by the Chicago White Sox as their manager on Oct. 30, and Albernaz reportedly withdrew from Marlins’ managerial consideration.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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The latest pitching sensation out of Japan appears bound for Major League Baseball in 2025. 

The Chiba Lotte Marines announced that they have decided to begin the process of posting star pitcher Roki Sasaki, clearing the path for the hard-throwing 23-year-old to transfer from Nippon Professional Baseball to MLB. Sasaki will be subject to international amateur free-agent restrictions, making him available for all 30 teams to sign at a much more modest cost than he would go for on the open market. 

Players who are posted under the age of 25 can only sign a minor-league deal from an MLB club’s international bonus pool money. Think more Shohei Ohtani, who was under the same limitations when he signed with the Angels for a paltry $2.3 million in December 2017, than Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who was 25 when he signed with the Dodgers for a record $325 million last offseason. 

While Yamamoto was the more decorated and durable pitcher in NPB, Sasaki is younger, bigger and throws harder. The flamethrower has been on the international radar dating back to his high school days and gained further acclaim in April 2022, when he threw a 19-strikeout perfect game for the Marines at just 20 years old. 

RELATED: 2025 MLB free-agent rankings, team fits: Where does Roki Sasaki slot in?

Sasaki can light up a radar gun. His fastball has clocked in over 102 mph in Japan and touched 101.9 at the World Baseball Classic, where he sat 100.5 mph and got a bevy of whiffs with his devastating splitter. He was teammates with Yamamoto and Ohtani when Samurai Japan won that 2023 tournament, and there is heavy speculation that he’ll team up with them again next year in Los Angeles. The Dodgers are among the clubs who have expressed interest in Sasaki for years. 

But unlike the pursuit for Yamamoto, every team will be in the mix to acquire Sasaki, given the restrictions capping his earnings. 

Orix received more than $50 million from Yamamoto’s posting fee last year. Chiba Lotte would likely have seen a similar return had the Marines waited another two years until Sasaki was 25. NPB teams control their players’ rights for nine seasons, after which they become free agents and are no longer subject to posting fees. 

But Sasaki has long expressed his desire to pitch in the majors, and while that request wasn’t granted last year, his Japanese club now appears willing to satisfy its young star’s wishes, as it stated Saturday in a statement on X. 

After throwing his perfect game two years ago, Sasaki followed that pristine performance with eight perfect innings. He finished 2022 with 173 strikeouts in 129.1 innings, then registered an even higher strikeout rate a year later, fanning 135 batters in 91 innings. 

Over his four years in NPB, Sasaki tallied a 5.74 strikeout-to-walk ratio — more than a full strikeout higher than Yamamoto, whose 4.48 mark was still good enough to make him the highest-paid pitcher in MLB history. That stat demonstrates Sasaki’s ceiling. His durability presents the red flag. 

While Yamamoto routinely crossed the 170-inning mark in Japan, Sasaki has never thrown even 130 innings in a season. Arm issues this year limited him to 111 innings and likely contributed to slightly diminished velocity and overall stuff. He was still plenty productive, but his 2.35 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 4.03 K/BB all represented dips from the dazzling 1.78 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 7.94 K/BB he posted the season prior. 

Still, he is one of the most intriguing arms available this winter. All 30 clubs will have 45 days to negotiate with Sasaki after he is posted. Once he signs, he is subject to the same rules and team control as any other rookie player. 

It is not yet clear if Sasaki will be posted before the 2024 signing period ends on Dec. 15 or when the 2025 signing period begins on Jan. 15. Whenever he does, he will slot in alongside Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell and Max Fried as one of the most desired pitchers on the market. 

And unlike those other aces, he won’t break the bank. 

Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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Jack Flaherty came over from the Detroit Tigersat the MLBtrade deadline and helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win their second World Series in five years in a five-game series win over the New York Yankees.

Flaherty stopped by “The Herd” on Friday to discuss how he was embraced by the Dodgers this season.

“I felt like it wasn’t a bunch of, ‘Hey, nice to meet you,'” Flaherty told host Colin Cowherd. “It was a bunch of, ‘Hey, man, good to see you.’ We all knew each other. … They brought me in, embraced me — and I felt like I just seamlessly fit in and was able to go out and have a good start in Oakland, and just go from there.”

Flaherty — who grew up in Burbank, California, which is located roughly 25 minutes from Dodger Stadium — went on to share what suiting up for the Dodgers meant to him on a personal level.

“You feel that any place they go, they’re the bigger, better team,” Flaherty said. “Matt Kemp told me, ‘It’s just different wearing the Dodger blue, and it’s different having ‘Dodgers’ across your chest.’ He said, ‘Guys just come here, and the level of their game just steps up, for whatever reason.’” 

Kemp, a two-time Gold Glover and three-time All-Star, played for the Dodgers from 2006-14, averaging 24 home runs, 83 RBIs and 22 stolen bases per season from 2008-14, while slashing .290/.350/.495.

Flaherty was a first-round draft pick by the St. Louis Cardinals and spent the first five-plus seasons of his MLB career with them (2018-23) before a midseason trade to the Baltimore Orioles in 2023. He then spent the first four months of the 2024 season with the Tigers, before being acquired by the Dodgers in July.

Flaherty posted a combined 3.17 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 194 strikeouts over 162.0 innings (28 starts) this season. The right-hander was then a mixed bag in the postseason, posting a combined 7.36 ERA in five starts.

Flaherty’s best postseason starts came in Game 1 of both the National League Championship Series against the New York Mets (seven shutout innings) and Game 1 of the World Series against the Yankees (two earned runs over 5 1/3 innings). That said, he struggled in closeout games, surrendering eight earned runs in Game 5 of the NLCS and being removed from the mound in the second inning of Game 5 of the World Series, having surrendered four earned runs.

The 29-year-old has been held back by injuries over his MLB career, having made 30 regular-season starts just once (2019) and dealing with the combination of oblique, shoulder, hand, hip and back injuries.

While stars galore on the Dodgers (e.g. Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts), Shohei Ohtani dazzled the baseball world in a unique manner this season, posting the first 50-50 season (50 home runs, 50 stolen bases) in MLB history.

Flaherty provided the first moment when Ohtani amazed him.

“There was a ball that he hit against Colorado against Kyle Freeland,” Flaherty told Cowherd. “He took a pitch that was up and in, left-on-left, and he hit it out to left-center. And he hit it about 10 rows deep into left-center, which you don’t do as a left-handed hitter at all, and then we all went and watched exactly where the pitch was. Then we saw it was two balls above the zone, and he hit it out, and we were like, ‘That’s not normal.’

“And they had watched him all year and been with him, and everybody was still like, ‘Wow, that was incredible. … He’s as cool, calm and collected as they come.’”

Flaherty is in competition with the likes of left-handers Blake Snell and Max Fried and right-hander Corbin Burnes, among others, to be the No. 1 compensated starting pitcher in free agency this winter. This is the first time that Flaherty has hit the open market.

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THE HERD WITH COLIN COWHERD

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