Yankees returning to second home as road team in series vs. Rays

Following the Yankees’ 4-3 win over the Royals in the series finale, the Yankees hopped on a flight back to their second home.

Only it won’t be their second home and it will not look as it was left behind to start the 2025 season.

The Rays currently occupy George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla., since their home stadium in Saint Petersburg, Tropicana Field, was severely damaged by Hurricane Milton in October.

The Yankees will return to Tampa for the first time this season for a four-game series against their division rival and Aaron Boone said he has felt excitement from his team to see the new atmosphere.

“I think we’re excited to get off the plane in the middle of the night tonight into some warm air. That’ll be fun,” Boone said before Wednesday’s win. “It’ll be interesting going back. I’m curious, I’ve seen it on TV and it looks like a good environment and everything. So, looking forward to getting back there. Unfortunately, we’ve got to go on the visitors side but I’m sure it will be a little bit different, a little unique. But I think something we’re looking forward to a little bit.”

The ballpark has since undergone a makeover. The “Yankees” lettering on the high wall along the first base line has been replaced.

The clubhouse sports a light blue and yellow combination of colors with a “Home of the Rays” sign, and the top circle logo above the scoreboard in the outfield has taken on a “TB.”

Early season statistics show George M. Steinbrenner Field is more of a hitter’s park.

At the same dimensions as Yankee Stadium, it’s currently the 11th most offensive favorable stadium at six percent more favorable than others, according to Baseball Savant’s park factor metric.

As the season moves along and the weather turns warmer in Florida, the numbers could increase.

On Tuesday, Boone said he believes the ballpark is still being figured out by every team when asked if he had heard what it’s like in the major leagues.

“Anytime you’re at a new ballpark, you try and make sense,” he said. “Oh, is the ball going to fly out? Is it not? What’s real? What’s not? I think people are probably still trying to make those formulations. You see a number of home runs hit in a day, you think, ‘Oh it’s going to be.’ … Well, we’ll see. I mean, that could be the case, but we’ll see.”