Anyone remember the "Nashville Sounds"?

[Benjamin Grimm]

I don't know that MLB is planning to expand in 2024, but if they do, the city of Nashville is planning to be in on it:



https://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/2020/07/06/dave-dombrowski-nashville-baseball-mlb-5-things-know/3192591001/https://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/2020/07/06/dave-dombrowski-nashville-baseball-mlb-5-things-know/3192591001/



I think the Tennessee/North Carolina area is probably the part of the country with the most potential for expansion. (Or for poaching an existing team. When I first saw this headline, I thought they were planning on going after the Tampa Rays. Or maybe the Oakland A's? I can't remember if Oakland has yet managed to get a stadium deal.)

[Edgy MD]

The Mets' former AAA home of Norfolk/Tidewater is the largest area with no teams in any of the four major sports leagues.



I guess having usual candidates like Nashville, Louisville, Buffalo, New Orleans, Montreal etc. compete on the field to play their way up to the big leagues isn't an option.

[Gwreck]

Edgy MD wrote: The Mets' former AAA home of Norfolk/Tidewater is the largest area with no teams in any of the four major sports leagues.

I don't believe that's correct. The Virginia Beach/Norfolk area is #2, after Austin, Texas.

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

MLB often turns to expansion after they take a financial hit. I have a hard time thinking cities with "-ville" at the end are actually cities. But I guess Nashville wouldn't be awful (better than Jacksonville anywhoo). Would be a fun place to roadtrip to

[Edgy MD]

Edgy MD wrote: The Mets' former AAA home of Norfolk/Tidewater is the largest area with no teams in any of the four major sports leagues. I don't believe that's correct. The Virginia Beach/Norfolk area is #2, after Austin, Texas.

Maybe. Austin's got an hour trip to see the San Antonio Spurs, though. That's something.

[MFS62]

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: Would be a fun place to roadtrip to

That's why I don't think it would be financially successful - it is a tourist destination, too many other things to do in the area.

I'm not sure how many tourists going to Nashville to enjoy the music scene would want to spend part of their trip/ vacation at a baseball game. I'd have to see the numbers MLB would run before landing a team there.



Later

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Well I wasn't suggesting they build a fan base of tourists. It's about whether the MSA and cable TV can support it. I think Nashville would be among the smaller baseball cities (roughly the size of Pittsburgh, KC, Cleveland, Cincy and inline with places Vegas and Charlotte that are also considered candidates for expansion. I do believe Nashville is growing unlike some of the above too

[Benjamin Grimm]

People who live in Nashville probably don't think, well, we're in a tourist destination so I won't go to a ballgame.

[MFS62]

Just my comment based on a consulting gig I did for the Vanderbilt Estate in Asheville (the Biltmore) a few years ago. They wanted some ideas about turning the place from an attraction to a destination. We teamed with some consultants who had done similar work for Disney. Not saying the same factors we uncovered wouldn't play in Nashville (see what I did there?), but they could.

As I said, I'd have to see the numbers they ran.

Later

[Edgy MD]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: People who live in Nashville probably don't think, well, we're in a tourist destination so I won't go to a ballgame.

Yeah, that's so Miami.

[Frayed Knot]

Is anyone really looking at baseball in 2020/2021 and saying to themselves that what the sport really needs is multiple expansions?

32 teams?, 36?, OMG 40?!?





In my view, if they really think there are multiple major league quality cities out there they should combine this with their already declared intention to revamp the minor league system

and expand downward. Free up what you think are the best of the current AAA cities, let them go independent and form them into some sort of MLB 'B' league. It could be small-ish at

first (10-12 teams?) but with a plan for growth over time until you have a fully formed 'lower' major league that could become a partner in a promotion/relegation agreement. You might

even wind up shrinking the upper ML to do it [24 teams in the upper level, 20 below, or something of that nature] but you'll also wind up with more teams in more cities which are

fully independent clubs with an upper division which will likely be even stronger than it is now. You can't just simply 'declare' a promotion/relegation arrangement and expect it to work

out of the gate. But if you devise a plan to get there it just might become something.

Either way: dream big, get creative. It beats the hell out of expanding when your reasoning for doing so is going to be similar to that Otter and Hoover and Bluto looking at Pinto and

Flounder and declaring; "We need the dues!"

[Benjamin Grimm]

The Nashville expansion group, if they get a franchise, will name the team the Nashville Stars, after the Negro League team that used to play in the city.