Rays owner in ‘advanced talks’ to sell MLB franchise for $1.7 billion

The Rays revealed Wednesday that owner Stu Sternberg is in “advanced talks” to sell the team. 

The potential deal values the MLB club at $1.7 billion with a group led by Jacksonville homebuilder Patrick Zalupski having executed a letter of intent to purchase the club, per Sportico. 

“The Tampa Bay Rays announced that the team has recently commenced exclusive discussions with a group led by Patrick Zalupski, Bill Cosgrove, Ken Babby and prominent Tampa Bay investors concerning a possible sale of the team,” the team said in a statement. “Neither the Rays nor the group will have further comment during the discussions.” 

The Rays perennially have one of the smallest payrolls in Major League Baseball but have been one of the most successful teams since 2008, with the third-highest winning percentage in that time.

Only the Yankees and the Dodgers have a higher win percentage. 

Sternberg, principal owner of the franchise, purchased the Rays in 2004 for $200 million, but has faced mounting pressure to sell the team in recent years. 

According to The Athletic, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and other owners have been attempting to persuade Sternberg to sell. 

The Rays have spent considerable time trying to build a new stadium to replace Tropicana Field.

They had a deal in place to begin building a new 30,000-capacity stadium as part of a mixed-use development in the Historic Gas Plant District in downtown St. Petersburg. 

However, as the March 31 funding deadline passed, Sternberg announced that the plans were being scrapped due to financing delays. 

Currently, the Rays are unable to play at Tropicana Field after the stadium sustain massive damage from Hurricane Milton in October 2024. They are instead playing out of George M. Steinbrenner field in Tampa, which is the site of the Yankees’ spring training facility and home of their High-A club. 

A Rays sale would be MLB’s third franchise to change hands in recent years.

In 2020, the Mets were sold to Steve Cohen, and, in 2024, a group led by David Rubenstein bought the Orioles. 

The news of the franchise’s potential sale came just hours before ESPN reported the majority share of the NBA’s Lakers being sold to Mark Walter, owner of MLB’s Dodgers, in a $10 billion deal.