The Tampa Bay Rays should declare in writing whether they want to pursue an existing financing plan for a new $1.3 billion ballpark or walk away from the deal.

Imagine owning a team worth $1.25 billion. You’ve worked for years on a new ballpark, only to see it wiped out. Welcome to the joys of owning the Tampa Bay Rays.

There's already uncertainty about whether or not the local legislature will approve bonds, and now the Rays have to decide how ready they are to commit to this project.

If funding were approved, St. Petersburg residents would have been on the hook for a new stadium for one of baseball’s least attended teams.

A combination of hurricane damage to Tropicana Field and political delays on financing means it is highly unlikely the Tampa Bay Rays’ planned new stadium will be ready for the 2028 season, if at all.

Engineers completed an assessment of hurricane damage to the team's current ballpark, but plans to build a new $1.3-billion stadium could be falling apart.

The letter also illustrates that the county has not missed any deadlines thus far, despite the Rays “fallacious” claims.