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Now that Major League Baseball may be on the fast track to getting attendance figures back up, it’s time to talk about the future of the sport. There are a few speculative conversations about the MLB expanding to other cities and it has to in order to keep up with the ambitions of the National Basketball Association and National Football League.
In order for there to be successful expansion, each division will need to have a new team so this isn’t going to be easy. MLB will need six additional teams for this to work and avoid creating uneven divisions. After all, the last thing MLB needs is another old National League Central and American League West problem.
Some cities to consider for expansion are Montreal (bring back the Expos and possibly renovate Olympic Stadium), Oklahoma City (the city is currently growing exponentially), Portland, and Indianapolis. Nashville is another Western city to consider. Charleston, South Carolina is more than large enough for MLB expansion and the Carolinas could use a team. A team in Charlotte would also be ideal that way it’d be easy to have three Eastern times without having to complicate matters. Charleston would likely seem like an odd city to start an MLB franchise but it’s growing exponentially as well and could be an amazing developing sports market that not one major sports league is taking advantage of.
Since the MLB playoff system already expanded, why not start talking about adding six more cities? This is the team for MLB to start thinking outside of the box. If the NFL and NBA continue to expand, then MLB needs to start making moves to at least keep up with the other major sports in order to keep fans interested and keep television broadcast viewership up as much as possible.
What will MLB ultimately consider? It’s a big push to suddenly add six teams but four would be a more likely start but at the risk of creating uneven divisions. MLB will have to be careful about planning this effectively.
Charleston could be the new go-to destination for baseball
Charleston is the city no one is talking about for MLB expansion but it’s the real wild card that no one is talking about. It’s a growing technology and transportation hub. There are six new Boeing facilities in the area. Charleston is quickly becoming a destination for clean energy businesses to expand to or start in. Charleston is also one of America’s largest and most prominent naval ports. Charleston’s economy is growing so fast that MLB can’t ignore this city. There are over 800,000 residents, approximately double of Cleveland’s current city population (not counting Cleveland’s suburbs) just to give everyone an idea of what this would look like.
Charleston usually has high tourism numbers especially when you consider how many want to view the iconic Civil War Fort Sumter. The city also is a hub for surfers and anyone who wants to take advantage of the city’s energetic way of life.
Could Montreal Still Work?
Montreal, Canada may seem like a long shot considering that the franchise moved to Tampa Bay. There was once talk about the Rays (formerly called the Devil Rays) moving back to Montreal due to talk of Tropicana Field no longer being the stadium for the team. That talk has since gone away since the announcement of the Rays’ new stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida (which seems likely to happen).
Although some will point to Montreal fans practically giving up after the MLB players’ strike of 1994, the citizens of the city might be itching for a new Expos team. Sometimes, when you move a city’s sports team elsewhere, fans want it back. MLB needs to seriously consider if this is practical.
Also, can Olympic Stadium undergo renovations or is it better to build a new stadium to replace it? What’s the more practical option? This would be another hurdle for MLB to figure out.
Now that the season’s nearly over and the playoffs are around the corner, this is an ideal time to start having conversations about the future of MLB. What will happen? This could get interesting. MLB slowly added the Washington Nationals (which Washington had the Senators MLB franchise years ago), Tampa Bay Rays, and Arizona Diamondbacks. MLB will also be very cautious about which cities get new teams since the Athletics are moving from Oakland to Las Vegas. It will be important to consider the feasibility of starting new teams and MLB can’t rush the process of the sport expanding to six new cities. This has to be well thought out and thoroughly researched.
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