Rays need four wins to force Game 7 as Brewers lead 2-0
A sellout crowd of over 40,000 will pack Tropicana Field for Game 3, the first time the team has played there since a $60 million roof repair following Hurricane Milton.
By Giulia Marshall ·
Tropicana Field is returning to the World Series after an 18-and-a-half-month absence. The Tampa Bay Rays face the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday night for Game 3, attempting to claw back a 0-2 deficit.
The Rays lost two one-run games in Milwaukee, leaving them needing to win four of the final five games to claim their first championship in franchise history. The Brewers lead the series and are two victories away from their first title.
A crowd of more than 40,000 is expected at the ballpark, which reopened this season after spending nearly $60 million to replace the roof damaged by Hurricane Milton in October 2024. The storm destroyed the roof and forced the team to play its 2025 home games at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.
During the renovation period, the franchise was sold to a group led by real estate developer Patrick Zalupski. The new ownership secured county approval in August for a financing plan for a $2.3 billion mixed-use entertainment district. The project includes a new 31,000-seat ballpark in Tampa, scheduled to open in 2029.
Rays manager Kevin Cash noted that the home crowd has been vocal during the postseason. "I know our fans are going to be really loud and excited to see us come back and kind of reset ourselves a little bit," Cash said. Second baseman Richie Palacios added that the team played well at Tropicana Field all year and wants to put on a show for the fans.
The stadium's unique architecture presents specific challenges for visiting teams. Four circular steel rings, known as catwalks, hang beneath the non-retractable roof. Ground rules state that a ball hitting the lower two catwalks is a home run, while a ball hitting the upper two remains in play. Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers, who played for the Rays in 2018, described the roof as the same color as the baseball, making it difficult to track fly balls.
Seven cownose stingrays that survived the hurricane are currently housed in a 10,000-gallon touch tank located beyond the right-center-field fence. Brewers reliever Aaron Ashby and second baseman Brice Turang noted the novelty of the feature before the game. If Milwaukee wins two of the next three games, the Brewers will win the World Series.
