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Tampa Bay Rays: Leaving Florida? Think Caribbean, not Canada

By Bill Felber

ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 08: A general view of Tropicana Field during the National Anthem of Game Four of the American League Divisional Series between the Houston Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays on October 7, 2019, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL. (Photo by Mary Holt/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 08: A general view of Tropicana Field during the National Anthem of Game Four of the American League Divisional Series between the Houston Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays on October 7, 2019, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL. (Photo by Mary Holt/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
(Photo by John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images) /

Possible New Homes for the Tampa Bay Rays

Santo Domingo

The capital of the Dominican Republic sits at the center of a 3 million person metropolitan area – that’s equal to the Tampa St. Pete metro area.

And unlike the folks in central Florida, Dominicans are gaga over baseball. Although the number varies from year to year, the nation routinely produces more big-league players than any country outside the USA, that figure generally running in the mid-80s. Baseball is the country’s national sport.

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The country has had professional baseball for a century, its teams routinely excelling in the Caribbean winter leagues.

Obviously summers in the DR will be hot. Daytime highs in the 90s are normal, as are nighttime lows in the 70s. Those factors plus the normal mid-80s percent humidity will require the construction of a domed facility. But you knew that.

From a purely practical standpoint, the biggest drawback to playing regular major league games in Santo Domingo is probably economic. Like much of Latin America, the average Dominican gets by on a fraction of the average American’s income.

That may require the creation of a plan that allows for some percentage of seats to be set aside for those unable to afford the prices that seats in New York, Boston, Los Angeles or Chicago can command.

On the other hand, Santo Domingo’s upper class also loves baseball, and it can support a big-league team.

If the Tampa Bay Rays are serious about off-loading some home games, the combination of factors at minimum merits consideration of Santo Domingo.

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