What does that do to possible MLB expansion and realignment?
Last week, I posted this article about potential MLB expansion cities, and what might be done to realign the leagues post-expansion.
Then earlier this week we learned that White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf was in “active discussions” to sell the team to a group headed by former MLB pitcher Dave Stewart. Stewart has previously been involved with a group trying to bring an expansion team to Nashville, so a (possibly) logical assumption was that if Stewart’s group is successful in buying the White Sox, the team might move to Nashville. Reinsdorf, in fact, had a meeting with Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell during the Winter Meetings last December.
Smoke, fire, etc.
Obviously we’re still a ways away from any sale of the White Sox, and then other owners would have to approve a move, perhaps with a relocation fee involved.
What would such a move do to possible expansion cities? And, we are also in a situation where the Tampa Bay Rays have to find some sort of temporary home because of the damage done to Tropicana Field by Hurricane Milton. I don’t think the Rays are in any danger of a permanent move out of the Tampa Bay area, especially considering plans to build a new stadium for the Rays in St. Petersburg.
So what would happen if the Sox moved to Nashville?
For one thing, that would eliminate any possibility of, or reason for, putting the Cubs and White Sox in the same division, if there’s any sort of radical realignment. As a Cubs fan I’d breathe a sigh of relief over that. For me, the Cubs’ bigger rivals are the Cardinals and Brewers, and to a lesser extent the Reds, and those are the teams I want to see the Cubs play more games against. As you know, I’m not a fan of the balanced schedule and once MLB does expand, I’d like to see more in-division games.
In a scenario with Nashville out of the expansion picture, I’d think Montreal would move to the front of the line among cities in the eastern half of North America. There’s a group called the Montreal Baseball Project dedicated to bringing MLB back to that Canadian city. I’d think one way to help a new Montreal team succeed would be to put it in the same division with the Blue Jays — right there, you have a natural rivalry. That would make a new Montreal Expos (and I’m almost certain they’d use that name) an American League team.
I believe MLB will want to balance expansion by putting one new team in (generally) the eastern half of North America and another (generally) in the west. Thus I’d think at that point, the logical counterparts to a Montreal expansion team would be Portland, Sacramento and Salt Lake City.
In my previous article, linked above, I named SLC as my choice. If a new Montreal team is an AL squad, Salt Lake City would be in the NL and could provide a good regional rival for the Colorado Rockies.
None of this is going to happen until the Rays and Oakland A’s are permanently in their new stadiums, which is supposed to happen in 2028. Obviously things can change regarding either of those situations, so I wouldn’t expect any expansion to happen until 2030 or later. (To me, 2030 still sounds like a science fiction year.)
So that’s what I think could happen if the White Sox move to Nashville. Obviously if they don’t, many things could be different.
Now it’s your turn.