It’s another day and another drama at the Bronx! This time for all the good reasons—a brand-new facility awaits the New York Yankees. Fans expect a cracker of a game at the Steinbrenner Field when the Yankees face the Tampa Bay Rays. But this time, the spotlight is on something different. It’s not just about the game; instead, it centres around the fact that they will be visiting time to play at their spring training home. Why is it so?

Well, this may come as a surprise to many, but yes, it’s true. The Yankees will come as a visiting team for the first time since the 30-year-old venue underwent a comprehensive renovation. There’s another reason behind this, though. Steinbrenner allowed the Rays to play 81 games at the GMS field. Instead, the Yankees are moved to the Class A Tampa Tarpons club near the minor league headquarters.

Quite an unusual condition, isn’t it? Phase two of the restructuring finally ended in February, and the facility has gone through a complete makeover.

The state-of-the-art facility has everything that the players and fans expect. Be it the huge training centre, double-decked dining centre, personal outdoor space, weight-training machines, hydrotherapy pools, and what more. But the strange part is that currently the facility is loaned to the Tampa Bay Rays. That’s why the Yankees are going to play as visitors. Manager Aaron Boone said, “Obviously, it’ll feel a little weird walking into the visiting side.”

The New York Yankees will be facing the Tampa Bay Rays in a four-game series at Steinbrenner Field. Regardless of them coming as a visiting team, Boone believes that the team will look forward to performing the best they can in front of the 10,000-plus audience. While the on-field battle will continue to impress fans, the main question remains—how comfortable will the Yankees be at their home ground?

Well, not much, considering that the Yankees will have to remain at the clubhouse. The Rays will have full access to the stadium’s updated facilities and equipment. That might not be the best thing they would expect—dining at Max Café or accessing the media dining room during the training without getting a proper view. Many may find it strange that the Yankees, despite being at their home field, will have to deal with such unusual circumstances.

However, despite the problems that they might face, the New York Yankees manager makes a surprising revelation at Tropicana Field, where they played earlier.

Yankees’ journey at the Trop will likely be forgotten

Despite the unusual circumstances under which the Yankees made their return to Steinbrenner Field, they aren’t going to miss Tropicana Field much. When asked about whether they will miss playing at The Trop, manager Aaron Boone said, “Probably just the catwalks,” indicating that they weren’t happy playing there. It was possible to infer his current thoughts from the silence that followed his response to the question. And it’s true! The ballpark never really went through a major revamp, even after experiencing severe damage due to Hurricane Milton last year.

The rooftop literally came crashing down, making it riskier for any games to be played. Tropicana Field was never really one of the best stadiums and the damages made it further lose its reputation. New York Yankees’ coach, James Rowson, said, “I feel like you’re playing in one of those hotel atriums. It just doesn’t have a baseball feel to it.” Since they have leased Steinbrenner Field to the Rays and will soon be playing there, they do not currently have any concerns. Aaron Boone did, however, reminisce about some of the highlights of the 2017 big-league opening day at the Trop, and perhaps they will work their magic at the new stadium as well.

Do you think the Yankees played a big gamble leasing to the Rays, or is it a good decision? Let us know in the comments.