With the trade deadline two weeks away, Rays baseball operations president Erik Neander isn't sure if they're buyers or sellers. 'We need to win some games.''

A Jacksonville group led by billionaire Patrick Zalupski have agreed to buy the Rays for an estimated price of $1.7 billion, according to The Athletic. The deal is expected to be finalized by September after negotiations took place over the past weeks. The Rays' principal owner, Stu Sternberg, bought the franchise in 2004 for $200 million.

Pete Alonso knows a lot about his hometown of Tampa and a lot about playing major-league baseball. And the Mets’ All-Star first baseman has a couple ideas on where the Rays should build a new stadium in his hometown.

The Athletic also reports: "Zalupski is expected to keep the team in the Tampa Bay area, with a strong preference to be in Tampa rather than St. Petersburg, the source said." Sternberg, who originally took control of the team in 2005,

The $1.7 billion deal for the Rays involves more than just America's pastime, with implications for soccer fans and stadium plans on both sides of Tampa Bay.

The Tampa Bay Rays might finally live up to their namesake. A group led by Jacksonville developer Patrick Zalupski is expected to buy the franchise for a reported $1.7 billion as early as September, and it wants to move the team from St. Petersburg to Tampa, according to The Athletic.

Tampa Bay has been playing at Steinbrenner Field as Tropicana Field undergoes major repairs after Hurricane Milton

MLB insider Ken Rosenthal proposes a "wild" Kyle Tucker idea, which would have the Tampa native leave the Chicago Cubs for the Rays in the offseason.