How Hurricane Milton Turned Tropicana Field’s Roof Into a Collector’s Item

How Hurricane Milton Turned Tropicana Field’s Roof Into a Collector’s Item

It’s not every day that pieces of a Major League Baseball stadium end up on eBay, but that’s exactly what happened after Hurricane Milton tore through Florida in October. The storm didn’t just leave a trail of destruction in its wake—it also shredded the roof of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays. And now, fragments of that very roof have become unlikely collector’s items, sparking a mix of fascination, controversy, and nostalgia among fans.

On the morning after the deadly storm made landfall on October 9, three relatives of a longtime Rays fan and season-ticket holder found themselves paddling through their flooded neighborhood in a canoe. Their mission? To help people and pets stranded by water too high for emergency vehicles. But as they navigated under an I-275 overpass, they stumbled upon something unexpected: a large piece of white fabric, roughly six feet by three feet, floating among the debris.

Curious, they loaded the material into their canoe and delivered it to Neil MacDonald, a devoted Rays fan who lives 20 minutes north of Tampa. MacDonald, a former auto parts worker, immediately recognized the material as fiberglass. “It’s a fiberglass membrane, it’s waterproof,” he explained. “If you look real close, you can see the black spots, mold that grows on the north side.” To him, there was no doubt—it was a piece of Tropicana Field’s roof.

From Storm Debris to eBay Listings

By November, MacDonald had listed a piece of the roof on eBay, where it sold for $45 on November 10. Encouraged by the sale, he put up more pieces, eventually selling at least seven fragments for a total of about $367. He wasn’t the only one; other sellers also listed pieces of the roof on eBay after the storm.

But the sales didn’t go unnoticed. eBay has a strict policy against profiting from natural disasters or human tragedies. “Pieces of the Tropicana Field roof, or other parts of the stadium that were scavenged in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, are prohibited on eBay and will be blocked or removed,” an eBay spokesperson told ESPN. Despite this, a review of listings showed that more than three dozen swatches had been sold since October 10, with prices ranging from $15 to $150. Some pieces were still selling as recently as Tuesday, described as “2×2 Tropicana Field Tarp” for $30 each.

Interestingly, none of these sales qualified for eBay’s authenticity guarantee, which applies to items like trading cards sold for $250 or more. However, MacDonald said no one ever questioned the authenticity of the roof pieces. While he doesn’t plan to sell any more, he’s found a new purpose for the fragments. “I’ve decided to pay it forward,” he said, explaining that he’ll give small slices to family members, paired with trading cards featuring Tropicana Field. He also plans to donate the proceeds from his sales to charities like the Florida Disaster Fund and Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches.

Why Fans Love Collecting Stadium Memorabilia

For sports fans, owning a piece of their favorite team’s home is about more than just the object itself—it’s about the memories and emotions it represents. Whether it’s a patch of dirt, a weathered seat, or, in this case, a piece of a roof, these items hold sentimental value. Rachel Hettman, a 25-year-old from New Jersey, bought one of MacDonald’s pieces for her boyfriend’s brother, Kyle Dowbnia. “I love having niche things from around the league,” Dowbnia said. “How many people have a piece of the Tropicana Field roof?”

According to the Rays’ media guide, Tropicana Field’s roof is made of “six acres of translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass” supported by 180 miles of cables. Built to withstand winds of up to 115 mph, the roof couldn’t hold up against Hurricane Milton’s sustained 120 mph winds. The damage has only added to the stadium’s reputation as one of baseball’s least-loved venues. The Rays haven’t ranked higher than 27th in attendance since 2010, and their inaugural season remains the only year they cracked the top 20.

The Future of the Rays and Tropicana Field

The hurricane damage has forced the Rays to play their 2025 home games at Steinbrenner Field, the New York Yankees’ spring training facility in Tampa. Reports suggest the Rays will pay up to $15 million to lease the venue, though the team hasn’t confirmed the amount. Meanwhile, repairing Tropicana Field is expected to cost as much as $55 million, even though a city report deemed the stadium “structurally sound.”

Discussions about a new stadium for the Rays have been ongoing for decades. In July, a $1.3 billion deal was signed for a new stadium and a $6.5 billion project to revitalize a predominantly Black neighborhood that was razed to build Tropicana Field nearly 40 years ago. However, a vote by Pinellas County to approve bonds for the stadium was delayed until December 17. Rays co-president Matt Silverman expressed optimism that the financing will be approved, following a meeting with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and county officials.

Memories That Transcend the Storm

For MacDonald, the tattered roof isn’t just a casualty of Hurricane Milton—it’s a symbol of his love for the Rays and the memories he’s made at Tropicana Field. “I’ve got four generations of my family [who are Rays fans],” he said. “You try and make a fan base and then you pull that away.”

MacDonald’s connection to the team runs deep. In his basement, he proudly displays a framed Rays jersey—not of a star player, but of longtime third base coach Tom Foley, who once handed out peanuts and bubble gum to MacDonald’s family during games. And in a final act of fandom, MacDonald turned a two-decade-old Louisville Slugger signed by Rays players into a flagpole, attaching a piece of the Trop roof to it. “If the Rays are playing on Mars,” he said, “we’re going to Mars.”