Possible MLB Expansion Cities And Team Names - Update 2023

MLB expansion cities are Las Vegas, Charlotte, Nashville, Montreal, Portland, and Salt Lake City. In the MLB expansion, numerous cities can be considered for probable candidates. 

Apart from the mentioned cities, some other cities rumored to be interested in the expansion are San Antonio, Mexico City, Orlando, Sacramento, and New Jersey. 

The expansion would be the first project in almost 25 years and a great addition to the baseball arena. The last expansion project of MLB was with the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Tampa Bay Rays in 1998. 

Some potential MLB expansion destination details are provided below. 

Las Vegas 

The positioning of Las Vegas as a potential MLB Team is in high rank due to its fast-paced growth in recent years. The city is also one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States. 

The city has obtained NFL, NHL, and WNBA franchises already and is already bracing for the expansion of MLB and MLS. 

The chances of obtaining the MLB franchise for Las Vegas are on good terms due to its larger audiences. However, maybe a downside for Las Vegas would be the TV deals and difficulty generating digital revenue streams. 

Charlotte

Charlotte hosts minor league baseball seasons, but the city is rumored to be the potential destination for MLB. It is also one of the fastest-growing cities in the US. 

The city is also setting ground-root efforts to bring MLB into its territory. The chances are also backed up by the idea that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred.

Another major reason that MLB could think of providing franchises to Charlotte is that it has potential sponsors and a loyal fanbase already existing in the city. Also, the Bank of America Stadium may act as a temporary or permanent stadium for the MLB.

Nashville

Nashville came into the limelight after Commissioner Manfred stated Nashville as a potential location for team expansion from 30 to 32. Nashville is known for its entertainment and its classical music.

Although the city is attractive for sports expansion, the market size and the city's help may not favor MLB. The question of the city handling a fourth major league team is also a major concern. 

Besides the city's ability, the Mayor of Nashville has not indicated pursuing an MLB team with the city's help, while there are many other things to prioritize. 

However, there are chances of MLB relocating or expanding to Nashville as it is a gorgeous destination with a historical backdrop.

Montreal

Montreal is one of the most populous and major cities in Canada. It is also regarded as the potential place for MLB expansion. 

Montreal City is being considered for the MLB expansion. One of the reasons for which it carries potential is that Montreal Exposes were a baseball team for nearly 35 years before becoming Nationals and moving to Washington.

The city is also known to have supported sports and is home to the Canadiens and the Alouettes. So, Montreal would be ideal, and the return of the Exposes would add value to the franchise. 

Portland

Portland also has caught the eye of MLB-concerned officials. The Portland Diamond Project is trying to bring an MLB franchise to the city. 

A team of investors, including Craig Cheek, Russell Wilson, and Ciara, has emphasized the importance of such mega projects to the city. The benefits would be the added Job creation and the civic pride associated with the MLB franchise. 

Portland could potentially be the MLB franchise in its territory and would be a great advantage for the city and tourism induced by MLB. As per the Bleacher Report, Portland will be targeted to provide franchises if MLB decides to expand for the first time in 25 years. 

Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City is the most populous city in Utah. Salt Lake offers a wide range of activities, including sports and entertainment. 

An MLB expansion to the city would significantly contribute to population growth, baseball, a strong economy, and the historical backdrop. It is deemed necessary for the inclusive growth of the city. 

MLB plans to expand the teams by two more groups, making it 32, and the franchise is yet to decide.

Another reason Salt Lake City is a potential city to get an MLB franchise is the coalition of Salt Lake, including Larry H. Miller Company and former MLB Dale Murphy and Jeremy Guthrie, plan to build a stadium in the Rocky Mountain Power District. 

Salt Lake City MLB Expansion is expecting to get an MLB franchise. Salt Lake has launched the Big League Utah campaign to attract MLB expansion. 

To attract the Major League Baseball expansion in its territory, Salt Lake has already set afloat a team to start the drive to obtain the MLB franchise if the MLB decides to go 32 from 30 teams.

The League of Salt Lake aims to secure a position as a prime baseball destination and is developing a new MLB ballpark. The city is also prepped to host an expansion team or a team looking to relocate.

Big League Utah Campaign

The Big League Utah drive proposal includes amenities and a stadium to be added on empty acres owned by Rocky Mountain Power. The company lies in the southwest of Utah State Fairpark and is considered one of the great moves to gain the franchise. 

The proposal has been in talks with the MLB officials for a year, and the campaign has some influential persons like the owners of Salt Lake Bees.

The Big League Utah is a coalition of the Miller family, Utah Jazz owners, and Utah's representatives. The league has federal, state, and local legislators, decision-makers, business and community leaders, and former baseball players.

Some investors have also shown great interest in the expansion and are now part of the Big League to bring the franchise to the city. 

The city's strength is backed up by the development it has observed in the last 25 years, making it an ideal candidate to host an MLB team. 

MLB expansion team names are Nashville, Portland, Las Vegas, and Charlotte. Montreal is also a potential candidate for MLB expansion.

Major League Baseball is planning to expand the teams, and the process for the expansion has already begun. Considering the expansion, MLB is identifying the potential teams as there's much debate in the baseball community about the MLB candidate.  

However, finding two candidates, up to which MLB is looking to expand, is a difficult choice to make. There are some teams that can make themselves into the MLB. 

Potential MLB Expansion Teams

Nashville is one of the best expansion teams to target because of the market size it has. The corporate market growth and successful Minor League Baseball with high average attendance make Nashville a potential team to join MLB teams. 

Las Vegas already has a Minor League Baseball and potential investors. A $4 billion precinct of Las Vegas increases the chances of getting to the NBA and MLS teams. 

Portland boasts a large metro area. Even though it does not have MLB, a strong fanbase for MLS and Minor League Baseball is a potential factor that makes it join the drive. The investors are also interested in backing Portland to obtain an MLB franchise. 

Charlotte has a strong fanbase of NFL, MLS, and NBA teams and has a Minor League Baseball team in affiliation with Chicago White Sox. The potential of Charlotte obtaining the MLB expansion franchise is higher than in several other cities. 

Montreal is also a good choice as it doesn't have major league sports competitions. Because Montreal not having any competitors and a strong base of fans, MLB expansion could hit Montreal as its favorite expansion team target. 

MLB expansion to 32 teams is possible. Commissioner Rob Manfred is positive for expanding teams to 32 by 2026. 

The MLB expansion brings the possibility of two seven-team divisions in each league. It would be great to see teams enjoying the addition that would feature the two division winners.

If the expansion happens, the four wild-card entry teams would be created, making it interesting by playing the best of three, and winners would participate in the division champs in seven-game series. 

The proposal will expand the MLB team list after the decision and invitations for bids are taken.

MLB is planning to invite bids between 2024 and December of 2026. The league will start playing games in 2027 if everything goes to plan.

MLB The Show Expansion Team includes picking a team name and stadium. It is also important to choose uniforms and logos. 

The expansion team mode in MLB The Show will enable users to pick a city, team, logo, and uniform, including a stadium, to make an expansion team. Through the expansion draft, the team can pick unprotected players from Actual MLB rosters and fill the new team. 

It will also allow the player to participate in the amateur draft to fill the minor league. The expansion in The Show would make it possible to blend the various aspects of the Franchise and Diamond Dynasty Modes offering gameplay in the 162-game season. 

The new mode after the development will be a great addition that would make an impact on the gameplay, making it more interesting. It will probably change the conventional series and encourage more playtime and commitment from the players. 

MLB Expansion and Realignment is a gameplay of 32 teams. Realignment divisions will be based on geography. 

A senior writer of MLB in The Athletic, Jim Bowden, has suggested the team be realigned on the geographical measures. Bowden states that a radical realignment would be based on geography, similar to the NHL/NBA model. 

The realignment will make the games smooth by minimizing travel and expanding geographic rivalries. Eventually, this sort of gameplay would impact and increase television viewers, ultimately dragging profits to the MLB. 

Keeping this kind of alignment in the MLB will also diffuse the conversations about fairness based on the market size in the industry. This approach will place larger market teams in the same division. 

MLB Expansion History

The MLB has so far been expanded about six times since 1961. The most recent additions to the MLB are Tampa Bay Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998. 

The expansion in the previous times used to be filled through an expansion draft. However, the teams have not been competitive in their initial seasons. 

The rich history of MLB, with the formation and relocation of teams in the 1960s and 1970s, brought up to follow the modern-day MLB. In 1961, Los Angeles Angels and Washington Senators joined the American League. After that, the Houston Colt .45s and New York Mets followed in 1962, becoming much-admired teams despite the early struggles. 

The formation of the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, San Diego Padres, and Seattle Pilots in 1969 was a major expansion of the MLB. However, The Pilots' time in Seattle was only one season as they relocated to Milwaukee and became the Brewers. 

Adding the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays to MLB in the 1970s made it possible to include two Canadian teams. MLB continued to expand in the 90s with the addition of the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins in 1993. 

The expansion continued in 1998 with the addition of Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (now Rays). The expansion and relocations of the teams in baseball are believed to have made MLB a national sensation.