TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Tampa Bay Rays players and fans experienced a first over the weekend: a home-game rain delay.
The team has played its home games at the dome-covered Tropicana Field since its 1998 debut, but Hurricane Milton destroyed the roof structure last year.
This forced the Rays to move across the bay and play in Tampa at Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the New York Yankees.
The Rays announced their first-ever rain delay ahead of the first pitch against the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday. The tarp was rolled back out onto the field when downpours struck during the fifth inning.
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Members of the Tampa Bay Rays grounds crew roll out a tarp during a rain delay in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
The Tampa Bay Rays grounds crew removes the tarp from the infield during a weather delay before a baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
Fans sit in the seats at Steinbrenner Field during a weather delay before a baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
An advisory is shown on the board at George M. Steinbrenner Field during a weather delay before a baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
Members of the Tampa Bay Rays grounds crew rolls a tarp over the infield during a rain day in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
Tampa Bay Rays’ Brandon Lowe, left, walks off the field after home plate umpire John Libka (84) called a rain delay during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) -
Baseball fans sit in the rain during the fifth inning of a baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
To commemorate the occasion, the team handed out ponchos that had “first Rays rain delay” printed on them.
Despite the weather delays, the Rays would go on to defeat the Brewers (3-2).