At some point in the future Major League Baseball will expand to 32 teams. I don't know if it'll happen in five years or 50 years, but it will happen eventually. And based on what is being said by those with the power to make it happen, it sounds like expansion to 32 teams could happen sooner rather than later. "We are hopeful ... that we can find ourselves in a world of 32 teams rather Lenny Dykstra Jersey than 30," Players' A sociation executive director Tony Clark told reporters Tuesday, . That comes le s than a month after commi sioner Rob Manfred said he "would love to get to 32 teams" . MLB last expanded in 1998, when the and joined the league. We are currently in MLB's longest expansion drought since the league first expanded in 1961. There are no shortage of viable expansion cities Zack Wheeler Jersey (Charlotte, Montreal, Nashville, Portland, Las Vegas, etc.) or prospective owners. Owning an is very lucrative and many people want in. The biggest i sue standing in the way of expansion is the and Rays, specifically their ballpark situations. Manfred has said those two clubs need new stadiums before MLB can consider expanding. Part of that is leverage -- MLB wants to continue using Las Vegas as a relocation option as Oakland seeks a new park in the Bay Area, for example -- and part of it is just doing what's right. "The condition of the Coliseum is a really serious problem for us," Manfred said Tuesday ( ). "(Approval for the Howard Terminal project) needs to happen now. It needs to be Steven Matz Jersey done. There needs to be a binding agreement done in Oakland quickly."Last year Manfred suggested MLB could seek an expansion franchise fee north of $2 billion, which Jose Reyes Jersey would equal a ma sive cash infusion for the 30 current owners. The 's Seattle Kraken paid a $750 million expansion fee in 2021, and with all due respect, MLB franchises are far more valuable than NHL franchises. MLB's expansion fee will undoubtedly be 10 figures. For the players, expanding to 32 teams would mean an additional 52 active MLB roster spots and an additional 80 40-man roster spots. It also means more minor-league affiliates and more opportunities. Whenever MLB has expanded in the past, offense has increased in the short-term because the pitching talent pool is diluted, then it levels out. There's plenty of talent to support 32 teams. Expanding to 32 teams presumably would create two 16-team leagues and eliminate the need for daily interleague play, though the universal DH took the starch out of that. It's likely MLB would realign to four four-team divisions per league and perhaps expand the postseason as well (14 teams?). That is Tug McGraw Jersey my speculation, though it's not hard to envision expansion driving all those changes.
At some point in the future Major League Baseball will expand to 32 teams. I don't know if it'll happen in five years or 50 years, but it will happen eventually. And based on what is being said by those with the power to make it happen, it sounds like expansion to 32 teams could happen sooner rather than later. "We are hopeful ... that we can find ourselves in a world of 32 teams rather Lenny Dykstra Jersey than 30," Players' A sociation executive director Tony Clark told reporters Tuesday, . That comes le s than a month after commi sioner Rob Manfred said he "would love to get to 32 teams" . MLB last expanded in 1998, when the and joined the league. We are currently in MLB's longest expansion drought since the league first expanded in 1961. There are no shortage of viable expansion cities Zack Wheeler Jersey (Charlotte, Montreal, Nashville, Portland, Las Vegas, etc.) or prospective owners. Owning an is very lucrative and many people want in. The biggest i sue standing in the way of expansion is the and Rays, specifically their ballpark situations. Manfred has said those two clubs need new stadiums before MLB can consider expanding. Part of that is leverage -- MLB wants to continue using Las Vegas as a relocation option as Oakland seeks a new park in the Bay Area, for example -- and part of it is just doing what's right. "The condition of the Coliseum is a really serious problem for us," Manfred said Tuesday ( ). "(Approval for the Howard Terminal project) needs to happen now. It needs to be Steven Matz Jersey done. There needs to be a binding agreement done in Oakland quickly."Last year Manfred suggested MLB could seek an expansion franchise fee north of $2 billion, which Jose Reyes Jersey would equal a ma sive cash infusion for the 30 current owners. The 's Seattle Kraken paid a $750 million expansion fee in 2021, and with all due respect, MLB franchises are far more valuable than NHL franchises. MLB's expansion fee will undoubtedly be 10 figures. For the players, expanding to 32 teams would mean an additional 52 active MLB roster spots and an additional 80 40-man roster spots. It also means more minor-league affiliates and more opportunities. Whenever MLB has expanded in the past, offense has increased in the short-term because the pitching talent pool is diluted, then it levels out. There's plenty of talent to support 32 teams. Expanding to 32 teams presumably would create two 16-team leagues and eliminate the need for daily interleague play, though the universal DH took the starch out of that. It's likely MLB would realign to four four-team divisions per league and perhaps expand the postseason as well (14 teams?). That is Tug McGraw Jersey my speculation, though it's not hard to envision expansion driving all those changes.