Inside the Tampa Bay Rays' rush to transform a spring training field to an MLB ballpark

TAMPA, Fla. — It’s a race against the clock for the Tampa Bay Rays as they prepare to open their doors to fans at their temporary new home this Major League Baseball season.

TAMPA, Fla. — It’s a race against the clock for the Tampa Bay Rays as they prepare to open their doors to fans at their temporary new home this Major League Baseball season.

With the Rays’ opening day game Friday, the team is working tirelessly to remove any signs of the New York Yankees, the original tenant of Steinbrenner Field. From covering up logos to swapping the nameplates of players like Aaron Judge and Anthony Volpe to Taj Bradley and Shane McClanahan in the clubhouse, to reorganizing the merchandise shops — it’s all part of the effort to make the Tampa Bay Rays players and fans feel at home this season.

“We have over 3,000 unique pieces of art that will be going up … a total makeover of the clubhouse to turn that into kind of the home of the Rays,” said Bill Walsh, chief business officer for the Tampa Bay Rays. “So just an extraordinary effort going in this week.”

Workers remove New York Yankees signage at the team store at Steinbrenner Field.Jorge Pujol / NBC NewsNow visible from outside the stadium is a massive “Rays Up” banner with “Thank you, Yankees!” written in smaller text underneath. The iconic sign spelling Y-A-N-K-E-E-S in navy-and-white letters across both baselines, a staple in this ballpark since its opening in 1996, is now covered with Rays logos in a slightly different shade of blue.

Even the hanging “NY” logo in the locker room has been covered by a square “Home of the Rays” banner. But every part of the Rays’ makeover is just temporary. Per their agreement with the Yankees, the Rays will return Steinbrenner Field exactly as it was at the end of this season.