DEVIL RAYS STADIUM

Tropicana Field is a domed stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida which has been the home of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays since 1998. Nearly a decade after its completion, the Tampa Bay area finally received a team to play at Tropicana Field in 1998. Wanting to attract a major league baseball team to the area, construction began on a dome stadium in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area on November 22, 1986. A dome stadium was chosen because of the rain that the area receives throughout the year. Originally named the Florida Suncoast Dome, the stadium opened on March 3, 1990. Once the stadium opened, the area began trying to lure several teams (San Francisco, Chicago, and Seattle) to the area. However, this was unsuccessful. The stadium was used for basketball, hockey, and many other events. Finally, in 1995, Major League Baseball awarded the area a franchise. The team called the Tampa Bay Devil Rays would begin playing at the dome in 1998. Although the stadium had originally been built for baseball, the organization decided to renovate the stadium to make it more like a ballpark. It was the last stadium built with a dome, and looks similar to a cookie cutter stadium. The stadium was closed for 17 months while renovations occurred. In 1996, the stadium was renamed Tropicana Field. Part of the $85 million renovations included wider concourses, installation of Astroturf, clubhouses, dugouts, additional luxury suites, restrooms, elevators, escalators and administrative offices. The seating capacity was reduced from 48,000 to 45,000. Finally, opening day came to Tampa on March 31, 1998, when fans filled Tropicana Fields seats to see professional baseball. Fans enter the main entrance at Tropicana Field through a giant rotunda reminiscent of Brooklyn's Ebbets Field. Once inside the stadium, visitors find themselves in a place called Centerfield Street. Here are a microbrewery, a cigar bar, a wine cellar and entertainment venues. Once you enter the field area, fans view a sea of blue seats. The lower level of seats wrap from right center field to home plate and around to left center field. The upper level of seats extend from down the base lines. An area of seats above the lower level in left field is a place called the Beach. This is a section with beach decor and tropical foliage. Beyond the centerfield wall is the Batter’s Eye Restaurant. The scoreboard is located beyond the right centerfield seats. After the 1999 season, the Astroturf was removed, and replaced by Field Turf, which is plastic grass. Tropicana Field's outfield wall has many nooks and crannies, which provides for interesting plays off the wall. The Tropicana The Hall of Fame Lounge, located on the mezzanine level behind home plate, is open to fans with Home Plate Box, Field Box, Lower Club Box, Diamond Club or suite tickets. Fans can enjoy a beverage and a premium cigar. The facility has also been used for rounds of the NCAA men's college basketball tournament; it hosted the Final Four in 1998.