TAMPA, Fla. — No doubt about it, the Tampa Bay Rays’ April 6 game at Tropicana Field is a premier date on the team’s schedule.

Not only is it the 2026 home opener, but it’s the start of a rare series against the Chicago Cubs, and it’s the first game at the Trop since the 2024 hurricanes threatened to destroy the stadium.

You would expect ticket demand to be high.

You might even expect tickets to cost a little more.

But did anybody expect this?

For at least the past week, the remaining 500 or so tickets on the team’s website appear to cost three to four times more than when they originally went on sale. In some cases, the current prices are higher than what scalpers are seeking on sites such as StubHub and SeatGeek.

While outfield tickets for Miami’s home opener at LoanDepot Park are going for $28 to $37, the comparable seats at Tropicana Field will currently cost you between $160 and $190. Tickets in the lower bowl down the left field and right field lines for the Chicago White Sox opener at Rate Field cost between $68 and $83. At the Trop, they’re $239 to $419.

To be fair, this feels like an anomaly. A rare occurrence based on the scarcity of remaining tickets.

It also feels like a very bad idea.

Just because you can charge more for tickets, doesn’t mean you should charge more.

Not at a time when a new ownership group is repeatedly talking about a partnership between the team and the community. Not when team officials are making a case for more than $1 billion in public funds to build a new stadium.

This isn’t a debate about inflation or fixed cost points. This is deliberately raising prices to outrageous levels simply because demand for this one game has outpaced supply. And maybe that’s a smart way to make a few quick bucks, but it absolutely sends the wrong message about long-term trust.

Asked about the cost of the remaining tickets, the Rays prepared this statement:

“Our goal has always been to make baseball accessible and affordable for everyone in our community. We offer $10 tickets for every game we play, without exception, so that fans who want to be part of the home opener can do so at an accessible price point.

“While demand for certain seating options can vary, it’s important to be clear that cost is not a barrier to experiencing Rays baseball. We remain committed to providing an affordable, fun and high-quality experience for our entire fan base. Not only now, but into the future.”

Look, I understand the pressures on the organization must be enormous. The new owners reportedly spent $1.7 billion to purchase a team in an undesirable stadium with a fan base that has underperformed for nearly three decades when it comes to the box office.

So cashing in on demand for opening day might seem like a no-brainer, but the goal should be to grow the fan base as opposed to a one-day infusion of what amounts to pocket change for an MLB franchise.

Think of it this way:

A fan who goes on the Rays website and sees opening day is sold out is going to be disappointed.

A fan who goes on the website and sees prices have been drastically inflated is going to be pissed.

Maybe there is some justification because Tropicana Field has the smallest capacity (25,025) in the majors so tickets are priced higher because almost every seat is in the lower bowl. Also, the team needs to produce as much revenue as possible to keep up with ever-growing payrolls.

But even that argument comes with a caveat.

Capacity is lower than other stadiums because the Rays do not open the upper deck. The previous ownership group maintained that was a necessary business decision because the cost of operating the upper deck (concessions, ushers, security, janitorial) was not justified by the revenue from mostly meager ticket sales.

The problem is that the lack of upper-deck seating inflates the cost of every other ticket in the building because supply is now artificially limited. It also misses the opportunity to grow the fan base while providing a larger inventory of cheaper seats.

The Rays have talked about opening the upper deck later this season, but there has been no official word on when that might happen.

You might think this is much ado about nothing. After all, the amount of tickets that remain for the home opener represent less than half of 1% of seats available at Tropicana for the 2026 season. And it’s entirely possible that ticket prices for opening day will be lowered in the coming days if the remaining seats do not sell.

But that’s not really the point.

If a new stadium is to be built, it will require a bond between team and community.

I’m not sure asking someone to pay $263 to sit near the right field foul pole is a good first impression.

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