Shay Taylor’s hours working as a bartender at Hawkers Asian Street Food were cut in half this summer.
She said the Tampa Bay Rays no longer playing just across the street means fewer customers, and fewer customers means fewer hours. And that means less money to take care of her 14-year-old pitbull Lady.
“It’s been tough,” Taylor said.
Hawkers is one of the businesses on Central Avenue in St. Petersburg that have lost customers since the Rays were unceremoniously kicked out of Tropicana Field by Hurricane Milton, which severely damaged the stadium. The team is playing this season at Tampa's Steinbrenner Field.
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Some of the restaurants near Tropicana Field relied on the flow of baseball fans for a bulk of their summer revenue.
Chris Steinocher, president of the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, said before the Rays debuted in 1998, many businesses would close for a few months during the summer. When baseball came to the area, it meant they could stay open.
“People don’t really understand how important it is to have something inviting people to your community every few nights of the week,” he said. “We depend on our local community to come see us.”
But now, the area has temporarily lost that draw.
"We've got businesses that are as far down as 30% in our community right now,” Steinocher said. “That's real jobs, that's real shifts, and that's what we're worried about."
Taylor said when she started at Hawkers in 2023, the restaurant would serve about 500 customers a day over the summer. Now, about 100 are coming in.
With a smaller paycheck, she said it’s harder to pay for groceries, and she’s had to get cheaper dog food for Lady, who also needs veterinarian visits and medicine to treat heartworms.
Across Central Avenue, Ferg’s Bar and Grill has also been hit hard by the loss of baseball.
From the back patio, customers can see a roofless Tropicana Field surrounded by vacant parking lots.
A restaurant that was once packed with fans before and after a Rays game is quieter this summer.
Owner Mark Ferguson said his business is having a hard time without the Rays but is finding new ways to draw a crowd.
“We really miss all the fans coming here two hours before the game and then eating and drinking and going to the game and coming back and listening to music,” Ferguson said.
Ferguson is relying on live music, pickleball and outdoor entertainment to fill the bar and grill. He said he also puts Rays games on about half of Ferg's 104 television screens.
Still, sales on game days are down around 60%, and while he's not had to lay off anyone, he has cut some employees’ hours.
Ferguson said loyal Rays fans who live in St. Petersburg still come to the bar to watch the games on TV since they don’t want to make the 21-mile hike to Steinbrenner Field, the New York Yankees’ 10,046-seat spring training.
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While some fans like the smaller stadium, outdoor baseball and change of scenery, others, such as Joshua Shea, said they miss the Rays in St. Petersburg.
Shea is one of the loyal customers who have stuck around Ferg’s – Ferguson was Shea’s physical education teacher at Southside Fundamental Middle School.
“It’s definitely hurt the businesses in this area because there’s no influx of people,” Shea said.
But the Rays’ temporary relocation isn’t bad news for all downtown St. Petersburg businesses.
Gravy Suits, the owner of Grassroots Kava House, said he was happy to see the Rays leave.
“Our customer base isn’t really a baseball fan base, so the thing that we noticed with them not being here is we’re busier,” Suits said.
He said the Rays being in town actually hurt his business on game days because his customers couldn’t find parking on Central Avenue or wanted to avoid the extra traffic.
The small, two-lane street is lined with parking spots, but there are only about three or four spots in front of each business.
Matt Kern is a regular at Grassroots.
He likes baseball and watching a game iat the Trop when it is raining, but fewer cars have made it more peaceful when walking around the city.
“It’s definitely going to impact our situation this year until the Rays come back,” he said.
Meanwhile, across the bay …
Steinbrenner Field is on North Dale Mabry Highway, across from Raymond James Stadium. The road near the facility is lined with strip clubs, car dealerships, pawn shops and a few chain retail stores and restaurants.
Small, locally owned businesses are hard to come by.
Mom’s Place Restaurant is one of those benefiting from the Rays being just up the road.
Diner manager Olivia Tort said the start time of a game determines how busy she’ll be.
“When it’s in the morning, like at 1 p.m., yes, of course, we have a lot of people coming,” she said.
She said she’s used to the added traffic around her restaurant in the spring for Yankees' exhibition games.
But with the Rays in Tampa this season, she said the fans are a buffer for the annual summer lull that Florida businesses feel.
“Because I live very close to here, and I see when they’re arriving at the stadium and when they are leaving, and they have a lot of people, I’m pretty happy about that,” she said.
She said she grew up an Atlanta Braves fan like her father when they lived in Mexico.
Now, she roots for the Rays.
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And even four miles south of Steinbrenner Field, a locally owned sports merchandise store called Heads and Tails is also benefiting.
Owner Mary Lou Ortiz said the store has had more fans stopping in before games.
“It's really great to see our locals come in, too, really excited with their little ones to go catch the game,” she said. “So we definitely do benefit when they're playing at home and they're playing well."
The Rays are scheduled to move back into a repaired Tropicana Field in time for the 2026 home opener.
Ferguson is looking forward to their return.
“We just can’t wait for next year,” he said.
