The Tampa Bay Rays officially have new owners.
The sale to a group of investors led by Patrick Zalupski closed Tuesday morning.
The price was not announced, but reports have placed it around $1.7 billion. That's a significant increase from the $200 million paid in 2024 by Stuart Sternberg, who will remain as a limited minority owner.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies, the United Soccer League Championship team owned by the Rays, is included in the transaction.
Zalupski, 44, is the founder, president and CEO of Jacksonville-based Dream Finders Homes, which builds single-family houses in Florida, including the Tampa Bay area, and other states. Forbes lists his net worth at $1.4 billion.
“It’s an incredible honor to become the stewards of the Tampa Bay Rays, a franchise with a proud history and a bright future,” Zalupski said in a news release announcing the closing. “We are especially privileged to have been chosen by Stu Sternberg as his successors, and we’re all energized by the responsibility to serve Rays fans everywhere and this great game.
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Also in the group is Ken Babby, the founder and CEO of Ohio-based Fast Forward Sports Group, a sports ownership and management company that owns the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, and Akron RubberDucks, the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. His Jacksonville team won the Triple-A national championship this week.
In addition to Sternberg, minority investors include Bill Cosgrove, the president and CEO of Union Home Mortgage, which has headquarters in the Cleveland area, and Rick Workman, founder of Heartland Dental. Workman had been a member of a group working to bring an MLB team to Orlando, but joined the Zalupski group this month.
Dan Doyle, the CEO of DEX Imaging, a Tampa-based office technology company, has also been reported as a minority owner.
Additionally, the news release listed "select investors" that include Will Weatherford, chair of the University of South Florida Board of Trustees and former speaker of the Florida House; former Rays co-president Matt Silverman; Doug Hertz, chairman and CEO of United Distributors, an Atlanta-based beverage distributor; and Robert Skinner, founder and managing partner at San Francisco-based IEQ Capital.
That group, along with Workman and Doyle, will serve on an executive advisory board set up by Zalupski and Cosgrove. Fred Ridley, a Tampa attorney and chair of Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia, will serve as an independent member.
And there are others.
"A robust group of limited partners with deep connections to the Tampa Bay region will join the overall ownership team and be announced in the near future, further strengthening the group’s commitment to the future of the Rays," the release said.
Silverman stepped down as a co-president last week, along with co-president Brian Auld, who has been retained in an advisory role.
Zalupski will serve as MLB control person and co-chair for the Rays. Cosgrove will also serve as co-chair. Babby is the chief executive officer overseeing the day-to-day business operations. Erik Neander, the Rays' top-ranking baseball official, will continue in his role as president of baseball operations.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said welcomed Zalupski and his partners to the ownership ranks.
"Their collective experience and passion for the game will serve the Rays well as they enter this exciting new chapter," Manfred said.
A continued search for a new home
The transaction closes a roller coaster era for the team, which saw more than its share of success on the field but continues a two-decade quest for a stadium to replace St. Petersburg’s Tropicana Field.
It’s now up to Zalupski’s group to settle on a location in the Tampa Bay area or elsewhere. Major League Baseball prefers the team not relocate due to its large and growing population, a ranking as the 11th largest TV market, media revenue potential and the high disposable income of many residents.
The Rays have been looking for a new home for when their contract at Tropicana Field ends in 2028. They played their home games this season in Tampa at Steinbrenner Field after Hurricane Milton ripped off the stadium's fabric roof last year.
St. Petersburg is spending about $59 million to repair the ballpark, and work is expected to be completed in time for the Rays to play there this spring.
Before the hurricane, the Rays, St. Petersburg and Pinellas County had agreed on a plan for a $1.3 billion stadium development project next to Tropicana Field. In March, Sternberg said the club was withdrawing from that agreement, citing the hurricane and delays that likely drove up the proposal’s cost.
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The decision didn't sit well with many city and county leaders, who said Sternberg — a Wall Street investor with a New York City address — never embraced the region.
On Sunday, the outgoing owner said the public and political fallout from the decision led him to consider selling the team to someone who “might have a better path” to securing a stadium deal to keep the Rays in the region.
In June, the Rays confirmed the team was in “exclusive” sale negotiations with the Zalupski group, and in July, Sternberg and Zalupski had formed an agreement in principle.
Stuart Sternberg purchased a 48% share of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays from founder Vince Naimoli for $65 million. Naimoli retained a 15% stake, while the remaining 37% was held by other limited partners.
But by October 2005, Sternberg had acquired full control of the team, becoming the managing general partner.
ALSO READ: Sternberg reflects on decision to sell Rays before his final game in charge
Under his leadership, the franchise dropped the “Devil” from the name and rebranded the franchise with more traditional uniforms while investing to make the Trop more baseball-friendly.
Another major change: The team began to win after an opening decade of dismal finishes.
Using sabermetrics, a strong farm system and the strong leadership of general manager Andrew Friedman and field manager Joe Maddon, the Rays reached their first postseason and World Series.
Sternberg’s Rays made the playoffs nine times, won four division titles and clinched two American League pennants. In 2021, they won a franchise-best 100 games.
Despite that success, the Rays have historically struggled at the gate, often ranking near the bottom in attendance among MLB teams.
Hence, the need for Zalupski to land the right stadium deal in the Bay area while other markets — including Orlando — await a chance to offer him a sweetheart deal.
His final season at the helm was chaotic from the start after the stadium deal fizzled and the hurricane ripped apart the Trop. Playing in the outdoor heat at Steinbrenner Field, the Rays finished 77-85, a second straight year with a losing record and no postseason.
