When the Tampa Bay Rays host the Baltimore Orioles at Tropicana Field this weekend, they will act like visitors.
The Rays will wear away uniforms and bat first, leaving the home team privileges to the Orioles, who will be considered the home team.
The three-game series between the two teams is being relocated to St. Petersburg from Baltimore, where unrest there prompted the Orioles to play a game without a live audience on Wednesday.
Rays president Brian Auld said initial conversations about a change of location happened between the Orioles and Major League Baseball.
“We got a call early on with just the simple question of, ‘Do you guys think you would be able to pull it off?'” Auld said.
With the stadium available (and no outside events planned this weekend), the Rays organization scrambled to contact subcontractors, vendors and staff to put on three games that weren’t on the Tropicana Field schedule.
While the Rays will keep their home dugout and clubhouse, preparations include toning down the home field sights and sounds, like prompts for cheers from the crowd. Questions surrounding walkup music and mascots are still being worked out, but Auld said the Orioles’ bird is welcome at the field.
For fans, the games are a bonus at bargain prices.
The tickets are general admission, selling for $15 for the Friday and Sunday games and $18 for the Saturday night game. To make seating simpler and save money on operations, the upper decks will be closed.
“I intend to be here an hour and a half early to rush the front door to get front row seats for 15 bucks,” said Bob MacDonald, who came to Tropicana field to get tickets on Wednesday.
MacDonald said moving the games was probably a good idea.
“I don’t know how the Orioles feel about it,” he said. “But I don’t mind.”
The Rays will not make any money from the games, Auld said. While the team hopes to break even, proceeds from the tickets will go to the Orioles, he said.
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