Chicago Cubs at Tampa Bay Rays

About an hour before the Rays officially opened the gates of Tropicana Field for the first time in 561 days, CEO Ken Babby was marveling at what it took to get Tampa Bay’s home dome ready for Monday afternoon. Parts of the ballpark smelled like wet paint. Even after noon, there was still drywall being installed. Staff were still scurrying around, making sure everything was in place. The mad dash to the finish line was made possible with “not a lot of sleep” and “a lot of energy,” Babby said. But the gates opened on time at 2:10 p.m. Two hours later, Shane McClanahan fired a 93.4 mph fastball to Nico Hoerner. After nearly 18 months, a tremendous degree of uncertainty and an even greater amount of work to repair the destruction caused by Hurricane Milton, baseball was back at Tropicana Field. Behind solid pitching and home runs by Cedric Mullins, Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda, the Rays gave the sold-out crowd of 25,114 something else to celebrate: a 6-4 win over the Cubs that improved their record to 5-5. “This is a great American comeback story. When I walked into this building for the first time, I myself wondered if baseball would ever be played here again,” Babby said. “For our staff, for the city, for the community and for our fans, this is a true homecoming. It's a real incredible moment for baseball.” If nothing else, it was an incredible day for the Rays on virtually every front. One the club’s new ownership group — represented by Babby, managing partner Patrick Zalupski and co-chair Bill Cosgrove, accompanied by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Rays brand engagement executive Brett Phillips — capped by buying a postgame round for everyone at Ferg’s Sports Bar & Grill.