The Charlotte Sports Park, which was destroyed by Hurricane Ian in 2022, has finished being repaired and will be open in time for the Tampa Bay Rays spring training season.
The Rays have held spring training in Port Charlotte since 2009, but the damage caused by Hurricane Ian forced the team to play spring training in Orlando and their home field in Tampa last year.
“Last spring was kind of a very disruptive spring, starting at Disney for a couple of weeks then going to Tropicana Field,” said Dan Moeller, Rays Director of Special Projects and Field Operations.
Now the repairs have been made to the park’s damaged lights, roofs, batter’s eye, clubhouses, buildings, boardwalk and playing surfaces. In total the repairs cost over $17.5 million.
“It was devastating to walk through it,” said Tommy Scott, Director of Charlotte County Community Services. “To see it now, ready with players out back, pitchers and catchers showing up in a couple weeks, we are so excited to have our Major League Baseball partners back here.”