Tampa Bay Rays' New Ballpark: Aiding MLB Success in 2026
The Tampa Bay Rays unveil a new stadium, widening their MLB lead over the Yankees as they eye postseason glory. What does the new park mean for the Rays?
Video Transcript
You know, what a year it's been for the Rays.
I mean, you know, they get their ballpark this week, you know, a, a brand-new ballpark that enables them to be able to stay in the Tampa Bay area.
So now they're gonna build it across from Raymond James.
It's gonna make it a sports complex there.
Now they're four and a half up, and they're starting to spread out their lead over the New York Yankees.
Yankees can't run them down, can they?
And the Rays right now have won 81 ballgames, George.
I mean, this is supposed to be a team that would win 75 games, and here they are at 81 with a shot to win 98 ballgames this year.
I mean, can they make a play for the postseason?
And could they be in a World Series?
First off, I have a truckload of family that lives in the Tampa area there.
I go down there a couple of year, times a year, and they're big Not all of them.
They are transplanted New Yorkers, by the way.
So some of them are Yankee fans, but they're big Rays fans there.
So congratulations for getting that stadium.
I've been to the Raymond, Raymond James.
I've been to the Yankee spring training across the street there as well.
Boy, the parking there is going to be interesting to say the least, by the way.
But, congratulations to them.
Are the Yankees going to go run them down?
No.
Y- the Yankees are way too inconsistent.
The Rays are as well, by the way.
So are the Red Sox.
There's no great team in the American League.
You know, you could make a big argument a top three, top four teams all in the National League here, and then you get to the Rays, Yankees, Red Sox there.
Yankees are too inconsistent.
I think that the Yankees, listen, you wanna get first place.
I'm not gonna tell you you don't.
You wanna avoid the, you know, the three-game series, the wild card round here.
But it's the most important thing for the Yankees getting healthy and getting home field.
All right?
You're gonna face the Red Sox, right?
It's gonna-- they're gonna be four and five here.
This game today between the Yankees and Red Sox, immensely important.
A, it'll give the Yankees another, game on them.
It'll be four, four and a half if they win.
But more importantly, whoever wins this game, Dan, gets the tiebreaker.
All right?
So it's an immensely important game today between the Yankees and Red Sox.
It's, it's starting now, by the way.
So no, I don't think Yankees will run them down.
They wanna get Judge back, and not only get Judge back, but get him up to mid-season form, you know, by the time the playoffs ar- arrive here.
Getting him back in two weeks is great, but if he's not hitting in two week after that, it don't matter here.
So they gotta get him back, get him healthy here, get Ryan Weathers back.
They got Max Fried last night.
Gotta get healthy and take it from there.
