ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — If you're looking to find tickets for the Tampa Bay Rays' first home game of the 2023 MLB Season, we have bad news. But if you already got your tickets for the big game, be ready to enjoy it with thousands of other people!
The Rays announced Monday that its home opener against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday, March 30 is sold out — marking the 17th straight season that the club has had a sellout for their first home game of the season, not including the 2020 season that was played without fans due to COVID-19.
Tampa Bay also said they will honor former Rays pitcher James Shields as he will symbolically retire with the club and throw the ceremonial first pitch.
Shields will visit the "Home Run Club" suite, which used to be called the "Big Game James Club" before Shields was traded to Kansas City, during the home opener to reunite with founding club members. The suite was donated by Shields to start a special club for foster kids and continues to provide a feeling of stability and belonging to foster children and adoptive families throughout the Tampa Bay area.
"More than 30,000 suite tickets have been donated to foster children and families, and Home Run Club events hosted by the Rays have resulted in numerous adoptions for local foster children," the team stated in a news release.
For those who missed out on tickets for the home opener, there are still some available for the remainder of the homestand against the Tigers on April 1 and 2. For more information on single-game tickets for other games or how to become a Rays season member, click here.
Tampa Bay's home opener against Detroit is scheduled at 3:10 p.m. Thursday, March 10. Fans can catch the ballgame on TV through Bally Sports Sun, or over the radio on WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM and iHeart Radio in Tampa Bay.