Overview

• The Rays and Zalupski’s team have signed a letter of intent but no binding purchase agreement has been finalized.
• The proposed deal values the franchise at about $1.7 billion, a sevenfold increase over Sternberg’s 2004 purchase price.
• Patrick Zalupski, founder and CEO of Dream Finders Homes, leads a group that includes investors Ken Babby and Bill Cosgrove.
• MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and other owners privately urged Sternberg to sell amid protracted stadium and attendance challenges.
• After Hurricane Milton damaged Tropicana Field, the team relocated to George M. Steinbrenner Field and stalled plans for a new St. Petersburg ballpark.