We’re going to see MLB expansion teams sooner rather than later. The league last expanded in 1998 when the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays joined the league.
MLB expansion fees were set at $130 million back then. It’s now around $2 billion, plus the cost of building a new stadium. These are the cities that could take us beyond the current 30-teams MLB setup:
10. Salt Lake City
The Arizona Coyotes relocated to Salt Lake City and in the process added an NHL franchise to complement the Utah Jazz of the NBA. Although a small market, the city has a booming economy and population is exploding.
At this stage however Major League Baseball may crowd what is a small market city and three major league teams may be too much to handle. The Rocky Mountains would undoubtedly create an incredible backdrop for a baseball stadium.
9. San Jose
San Jose is a much bigger city than Oakland and would be a perfect replacement to fill the void in the Bay Area after the loss of the A’s. The biggest roadblock remains to be San Francisco’s territorial rights over Santa Clara County.
The city is represented by the Sharks in the NHL and Earthquakes in Major League Soccer. As one of the larger cities in America, San Jose can easily manage an MLB expansion team if it could overcome the Giants’ territory claim.
8. Raleigh
Home to the popular Carolina Hurricanes, Raleigh is a possible MLB expansion team candidate and there’s no doubt that the locals would get behind a team in the same way they do about their “Canes”.
Charlotte’s the more likely scenario if Major League Baseball expands into North Carolina, but with the Hornets, Panthers, Charlotte FC, you could argue that the less saturated Raleigh makes better sense.
7. Orlando
Orlando is a bigger city than Cleveland and Cincinnati and comparable in size to both Pittsburgh and St Louis. Disney World is a world class attraction, and the only major league teams competing for market share in the city are the Magic and Orlando City SC.
An expensive state-of-the-art ballpark precinct is what Orlando will need to attract a MLB expansion team. Driving up the price will be the requirement for a domed roof to keep out the Florida weather.
6. Mexico City
Mexico City is a potential destination for an NBA or NFL expansion team. A Major League Baseball team in the Mexican capital makes sense. Regular season games in Mexico City have been sellouts and the city is bigger than New York City.
A large portion of MLB rosters are made up of Hispanic players drawing incredible interest in the sport. The biggest hurdle a Mexico City MLB expansion team bid will face is overcoming the logistical issues of being so far away from most of America.
5. San Antonio
San Antonio is one of the biggest cities in America. Combined with neighbouring Austin, the enormous San Antonio-Austin metroplex continues to boom and is a marketing the MLB needs to consider for the next expansion team.
Between both San Antonio and Austin, only the Spurs and Austin FC play in the major leagues so the metroplex is a massive market for Major League Baseball to tap into. The biggest problem Alamo City must face is the tremendous support for the Houston Astros across southern Texas.
4. Montreal
Since 2005 the only Canadian Major League Baseball team has been the Toronto Blue Jays. Montreal can host an MLB expansion team based on population alone with four million people in the metro area.
The only major league sports team in the city is the NHL’s Canadiens so there’s room for baseball. The Red Sox and Blue Jays are more than 300 miles away, and the Expos were based in Montreal for over 30 years before moving to DC.
3. Charlotte
Charlotte is home to an NFL, NBA and MLS team and is the only city in America to have the trio without a Major League Baseball team. As one of the fastest growing cities in the country Charlotte is ready for a MLB expansion team.
Minor League team and Chicago White Sox affiliate the Charlotte Knights have very strong average attendances. Charlotte FC joined the MLS in 2022 and set a then-record attendance of 74,479 in their first ever home game.
2. Portland
Portland almost became a Major League Baseball city in 2003 and 2007 with relocation attempts of the Montreal Expos and Florida Marlins respectively. A Portland team makes sense as it’s the largest city in America to host major sports withoNorth ut having an MLB team.
Cincinnati, Kansas City and Milwaukee all host MLB teams and are smaller than Portland. Attracting decent crowds is Minor League Baseball team Hillsboro Hops, based in metro Portland.
1. Nashville
Nashville makes sense to become the next MLB expansion team with the biggest reasons being the fact that the closest Major League Baseball teams are four hours away in Atlanta and Cincinnati, and the success of MLS expansion team Nashville SC.
The Nashville Sounds average the highest Minor League crowds in America, and the city has a bigger market than four Major League cities – San Diego, Kansas City, Milwaukee and Cincinnati. Nashville no doubt deserves to host the next MLB team.
