MLB may not be expanding soon.
May 28th is the date, according to those in the know, that people in Sacramento intend to announce that it is full speed ahead on the road to landing a Major League Baseball expansion franchise. Sacramento, rather West Sacramento, is in its second season of a three-year residency of hosting John Fisher’s Athletics’ franchise. Fisher hopes to move his business to Las Vegas in 2028. Right now, Sacramento has no stadium suitable for Major League Baseball in the long term and no individual or a group with a few billion dollars lying around to buy and operate a franchise. It is unclear if MLB owners want a team in West Sacramento although Sacramento is the capital of California and MLB does do business in San Diego, in Anaheim, in Los Angeles and in San Francisco. And there could be the need for California public money to build a stadium in Anaheim in the next few years.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has been pushing the idea of expansion for many years now but Manfred wanted to see stadium situations in Oakland and St. Petersburg, Florida resolved. MLB owners have allowed Fisher to leave Oakland with the three-year stop in Sacramento and then onto Las Vegas. The Tampa Bay market situation has not been resolved. Sacramento could be competing with a number of cities to get one of two expansion teams that could be available. For a long time, it was thought that Nashville was a leader in the race but is there public money available for a baseball park after Nashville and Tennessee taxpayers have put up money for a football venue and a soccer stadium. Utah is ready to put up money for a baseball stadium in Salt Lake City. Other cities in the mix might include Vancouver, Montréal, Raleigh, Charlotte and Orlando. MLB is not expanding anytime soon.
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