TAMPA — The Rays have adjusted their schedule to avoid conflicts with two Bucs home games and eliminate significant logistical, traffic and parking hassles with the stadiums sitting across Dale Mabry Highway from each other.
The Rays’ planned game with the Cardinals Aug. 23 at Steinbrenner Field will now be played on Aug. 21, a Thursday that had been an off day for both teams. Instead, they will have a rare Saturday off.
The Bucs are slated to play an exhibition game against the Bills Aug. 23 at Raymond James Stadium with a 7:35 p.m. start.
The Rays’ regular-season home finale Sept. 21 against the Red Sox will be pushed back from a planned 12:10 p.m. start to 7:35. The Bucs will play their home opener against the Jets that day, with a 1 p.m. kickoff.
In addition to having 75,000-plus fans heading to the same area, the conflicts would have put a major squeeze on parking, as most Rays fans have been using the north Raymond James lots. There also would be a strain on police/emergency personnel, as well as issues for workers who have gigs at both stadiums.
Tickets with the original dates and times can be used for the rescheduled games, the Rays said. Fans interested in exchanging tickets for other 2025 regular season games at Steinbrenner Field can email tickets@raysbaseball.com, though some exclusions may apply.
The Rays had asked the NFL to avoid any conflicts, if possible. They did get one break in that the Bucs will open the regular season at Atlanta on Sept. 7, while the Rays are hosting Cleveland.
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