One major obstacle to Major League Baseball expansion disappeared in late August when the Hillsborough County Commission approved $796 million in public funding to help the Tampa Bay Rays build a new ballpark, according to the report. Commissioner Rob Manfred has long said he wanted the stadium situations for the Rays and the Oakland A’s sorted out before addressing expansion; the A’s move to Las Vegas is nearing and the Rays’ stadium is now funded.
With those issues largely resolved, the remaining barrier is a new collective-bargaining agreement, which MLB expects will be completed at an uncertain date. Once the CBA is in place, MLB is likely to open an expansion process for the first time in more than three decades, the longest stretch without a new franchise since expansion began in 1961, sources said.
Manfred has said he wants two expansion cities — one West Coast and one East Coast — selected before his planned retirement in January 2029, and the shrinking timeline is putting pressure on bids to solidify their cases, the report notes. Ownership stability, locked-in stadium funding and a ready site are the three most important elements for a successful bid, according to sources.
Salt Lake City checks all three boxes and has emerged as the most advanced contender. The bid is led by Big League Utah and backed by the Larry H. Miller Company; the Salt Lake City combined statistical area was 2,705,693 at the 2020 Census and its media market ranks 28th. Ownership has pledged $3.5 billion for a 100-acre mixed-use development and the state has committed $900 million intended to cover half the cost of a stadium. A stadium site, the Power District on the city’s west side, is already under construction, the report says.
The Miller family’s experience saving the NBA’s Jazz and their long-term stewardship of that franchise have bolstered confidence in Salt Lake City’s stability as a bid, and the report called the city the favorite for the Western slot. By contrast, Nashville — long considered a front-runner for an Eastern team — currently lacks the ownership, funding and site commitments, and several current MLB owners have questioned whether Music City can align those pieces in time.
The report adds that expansion fees are expected to be well in excess of $2 billion, with some estimates in the $2.5 billion range; recent MLB franchise sales of the Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres, at about $4 billion and $3.9 billion respectively, were cited as context. Even if new teams would not debut until as late as 2032, an expansion committee could be in place as soon as next year to evaluate bids.
