Rays shift games to avoid weather issues

NEW YORK (AFP) — The Tampa Bay Rays have had six of their 2025 regular-season games shifted to the early season due to weather issues from playing outside, Major League Baseball announced Monday.

The Rays’ usual home, domed Tropicana Field, was damaged by hurricane “Milton” last month with almost all of its roof shredded and no possibility of playing there next year.

As a result, the Rays moved their 2025 home games from St. Petersburg to the New York Yankees training complex at nearby Tampa, which has an 11,000-seat outdoor stadium.

An April series scheduled against the Los Angeles Angels that had been set for California will instead be played 8 to 10 April in Florida.

A series between the two which had been set for August in Florida will now be hosted by the Angels on 4 to 6 August.

A Rays series against the Minnesota Twins planned in Minneapolis from 26 to 28 May will instead be played on the same dates in Tampa while a series that had been set for Tampa on 4 to 6 July will now be played in Minnesota.

Florida summers can bring extreme heat and rain.