RAYS OWNER WANTS TAMPA, NOT ST. PETE

The owner of the Rays baseball team wants to make Ybor City — a historic neighborhood in the city of Tampa — the team’s next home.

Stuart Sternberg said at a news conference Friday that the team would focus its new ballpark search on a 14-acre site in Tampa that sits just north of Ybor Channel.

It’s the first time the team has publicly stated its preference for Tampa over St. Petersburg, its home for more than 20 years.

Also Friday, a local businessman announced the formation of the Tampa Bay Rays 2020 organization and campaign to help gain support for the project from the public and business community.

The timeline of such a project is unclear. A new ballpark will likely cost more than $700 million.

A small difference of opinion.

PHOENIX» Pitcher Mike Foltynewicz went to salary arbitration with the Braves over a difference of $100,000, the smallest gap in a hearing since 1994.

The 26-year-old righthander asked Gary Kendellen, Mark Burstein and Walt De Treux for a raise from $544,000 to $2.3 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility. The Braves argued for $2.2 million during Friday’s hearing.

Oakland pitcher Kendall Graveman also went to a hearing, asking James Oldham, Margaret Brogan and Jeanne Wood to lift his salary from $545,000 to $2.6 million instead of the Athletics’ $2.36 million offer.

Players have a 7-4 record with three decisions pending and nine hearings scheduled for next week. The case involving Cleveland pitcher Trevor Bauer, which was heard Thursday, will not be decided until late next week. That will be after hearings for Baltimore’s Kevin Gausman and Toronto’s Marcus Stroman.

Footnotes.

Veteran lefthander Derek Holland signed a minor-league deal with the Giants. Holland could compete for a job out of spring training with a rotation that has three set starters. There are two spots up for grabs, and manager Bruce Bochy says Ty Blach and Chris Stratton are the leading candidates to fill out those positions. … Infielder Ryan Flaherty and outfielder Collin Cowgill agreed to minor-league contracts with the Phillies and will attend big-league spring training. … Outfielder Daniel Nava finalized a minorleague contract with the Pirates and will report to the major-league team. —