Two teams, neither with a World Series title. One of them is about to change that, in a stadium that wasn't playable two years ago.

The Brewers and Rays meet for Game 3 Monday at Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay, where a repaired dome now keeps the weather out.

Milton's damage

On Oct. 9, 2024, Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida, as a Category 3 storm with 120-mph winds.

Weather in your inbox

Forecast Location

Sign Up

By signing up you agree to the Terms & Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe at any time.

The storm's powerful winds ripped apart Tropicana Field's roof in St. Petersburg, Florida, leaving the stadium's interior exposed to the weather.

(MORE: Hurricane Milton 2024 Recap)

The damage forced the Rays to relocate for the entire 2025 season, playing their home games at an outdoor ballpark in Tampa.

Get More of Our News on Google

Set The Weather Company as a 'Preferred Source' to get quicker access to the news you value.

Meanwhile, Tropicana Field underwent a multimillion-dollar restoration, including a new roof designed to withstand winds of up to 165 mph, compared with the original roof's reported 115-mph wind rating. The Rays returned to Tropicana Field in April 2026.

Two years later, the Rays are back home with a stronger roof overhead. The same stadium that Milton left in shambles is now taking center stage for the World Series.

Tale of two climates

The World Series opened in Milwaukee over the weekend, where fall weather was settling in. Now the series heads south to Tampa Bay, where it's much warmer and more humid.

The two cities have very different late-October climates. Even when the thermometer readings look similar, Tampa's humidity makes the air feel muggier, while Milwaukee's air is cooler and drier.

But here's the twist: both teams play in stadiums with roofs. Milwaukee's American Family Field has a retractable roof, while Tropicana Field has a permanent dome, so there will be no rain delays in a state where they're common.

(MORE: Baseball returns to Tropicana Field 18 months after Hurricane Milton)

It's safe to say weather may not have much say in what happens on the field, unlike a typical baseball game.

One series, one new champion

The Brewers' only previous World Series appearance came in 1982, and they lost. The Rays fell short in 2008 and 2020.

Neither franchise has ever won it all.

But this year, one team will claim its first World Series title. For Tropicana Field, the journey from hurricane-ravaged stadium to baseball's biggest stage is a comeback story of its own.

Faiza Mohammed is a meteorologist intern at weather.com. She studied geography and worked with the Weather Dawgs team at the University of Georgia. She also received her master's in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology.