Tag: Nashville

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: MLB The Frontrunners for Expansion

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According to sources the top three cities that MLB and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred are considering for expansion are Utah, Portland and Nashville. Cities that look like their out of the hunt for expansion Oakland and Montreal two former MLB towns. (AP News photo)

MLB:The Frontrunners for Expansion

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

Oakland is never going to get an expansion team in Major League Baseball. John Fisher folded his tent in Oakland and took the Circus on a crusade to Sacramento, with Las Vegas as their ultimate stop. John Fisher killed Major League Baseball in Oakland.

But currently, two cities are leading the race for expansion. Portland, Oregon, and Salt Lake City, Utah. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has stated that he hopes to have the expansion process in place before his term ends in January 2029. –

Numero Uno: Portland seems to be ahead and a leading contender for one of the two expansion cities. Portland is pursuing a team through its Portland Diamond Project. They have strong civic support and plans for a stadium.

A final ownership group of people with financial resources is still needed; the largest city in Oregon is leading the way. The Portland Trail Blazers are the only professional team in the top leagues: the NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB. The State of Oregon has a total population of 4,280,000, of which 635,000 live in Portland, its largest city.

-Numero Dos: Salt Lake City. They are preparing to be a potential Major League Baseball expansion city. They are developing a 100-acre Power District, for mixed use that includes a site for their future ballpark, together with housing, retail and green spaces.

The construction of that district is underway and basically waiting for MLB through their Commissioner Rob Manfred to select them as a one of the two new major league towns. The State of Oregon population is 4.5 million and Salt Lake City their largest city with 218,000 residents.

Officials in Salt Lake City said that they intend to be “shovel-ready” for the job, if a team is awarded. In the State of Utah there are two teams among the top pro-sports league. The Utah Jazz in the NBA and The new NHL team, the Utah Mammorth which officially began play in the 2024–25 season.

Last two: The last expansion teams in MLB history were the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Tampa Bay Rays, which began play in 1998. Currently, MLB has 30 teams, the NBA has 30, the NFL has 32, and the NHL has 32. Major League Soccer (MLS) does not rank higher than the MLB, NBA, NFL or NHL in terms of average franchise valuation or revenue. The main reason I have not listed them.

Happy Halloween!

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.

While in the Bay Area, great food and great prices. 998cuba.com

Sacramento A’s relocation podcast Daniel Dullum: MLB studying nine cities for expansion

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A’s Las Vegas ballpark live stream at 3:00pm Fri Aug 29, 2025 (A’s Vegas ball park live stream)

Sacramento A’s relocation podcast: MLB Studying nine cities for expansion

#1 MLB is proposing realignment but there must be expansion before that is to happen. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said there will be shuffling teams into different divisions and MLB is considering adding two more teams from expansion to make realignment work.

#2 There are a multiple cities vying for a MLB team there is a list of the top nine cities who want a MLB franchise but only two would be considered. Those two should be ready to host by 2030.

#3 The top cities being considered, Charlotte, Mexico City, Montreal, Nashville, San Antonio, Salt Lake City, Portland, Sacramento, and Oakland. Daniel talk about which two cities has the best chance to get selected.

#4 Since we are doing the A’s relocation podcast talk about your thoughts on the chances of Oakland getting an expansion team.

#5 The pluses for an Oakland expansion team its the tenth largest TV market in the country and the Bay Area has no shortage of corporate sponsorships. Oakland is the largest TV market out of the nine cities mentioned for expansion. Money talks will MLB be smart on the TV market size or keep walking past Oakland?

Daniel Dullum does the A’s relocation podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

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That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Oakland an expansion city?

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Nine possible expansion cities MLB is considering to expand to (image by Fox Sports)

Oakland an expansion city?

–That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Major League Baseball plans to expand to 32 teams after the Oakland Athletics move to Las Vegas and the Tampa Bay Rays secure a new ballpark. So that is not happening tomorrow; it will be a few more years. But could Oakland, California, be one of these expansion teams?

I am not as surprised as others when one of the nine (9) cities named as a candidate for an expansion franchise was Oakland. Oakland is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, one of the top ten media markets in the US.

With Silicon Valley in the South Bay (San José) we are also considered one of the affluent markets in the United States. The primary reason the Oakland A’s left Oakland is the lack of a new stadium and the owner’s desire for a more profitable market.

Owner John Fisher chose Las Vegas, Nevada, the #40 media market in the United States, over the Bay Area, one of the top markets in the country. In other words, Mr. Fisher left a Filet Mignon on the table for a Hamburger.

However, let’s be clear, the Oakland A’s are not returning to Oakland. But, there is a possibility that Oakland could have a new team, an expansion team in the Major Leagues. A brand-new-shinning Oakland logo back in the East Bay.

Stranger things have happened. Although the commissioner has stated that there are no predetermined locations, these nine seem to be the most popular. Charlotte, Mexico City, Montreal, Nashville, San Antonio, Salt Lake City, Portland, Sacramento, and Oakland.

In the case of Sacramento (which is currently the temporary home of the A’s, onto Las Vegas in a few years), Sacramento would have to build a brand-new park to meet major league specifications. The key figure in professional sports in California’s capital city is Vivek Ranadivé, and his ownership group, which owns both the NBA’s Sacramento Kings and the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A Affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.

Ranadivé extended a hand to John Fisher to bring his A’s to Sacramento temporarily; he could be interested in a major league franchise in his town, an expansion team. Keep in mind, we are talking years in the future.

Joe Lacob and Peter Gruber are the owners of the NBA Golden State Warriors and the WNBA Golden State Valkyries. Could it be that these same owners, who a couple of years ago had an offer to buy the Oakland A’s from John Fisher, would be interested in a new expansion team across the bay?

Makes sense, since they are already invested and very influential in the Bay Area Professional sports scene. México City, México, makes a lot of sense. Major League Baseball’s influence in Latin America continues to grow, with over 30% of Hispanic players born South of the Border among the biggest stars in the world.

Montréal, Canada (which had the Expos for 36 seasons), is also an interesting choice. If they do get an expansion team, it would be the second team in all of Canada, alongside the Toronto Blue Jays, like it used to be.

Let’s face it, Canada, eh… is a nice country, they deserve more than hockey. If the Commissioner wants to make baseball more international, we should expand further north to Canada and south to México. I am only using common sense, but beware; ‘common sense is not very common in 2025’

On managing the expansion Mets: “They’ve shown me ways to lose that I never knew existed.” — Casey Stengel.NY Mets Manager(1962)

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.

http://goaquaadventure.com

@Central Park Fremont – Fremont CA

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: City of Oakland wants an Expansion team 

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Oakland A’s team president David Kaval has been negotiating with the Oakland Coliseum Joint Authority and said the negotiations have been positive from last their last meeting on Thu Feb 15, 2024. (AP News file photo)

On That’s Amaury News and Commentary:

City of Oakland wants an Expansion team 

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

The season for the A’s begins on March 28, 2024, their last year in the lease with the Oakland Coliseum. Working on the premise that the A’s will be playing in Las Vegas by 2028, the City of Oakland and the Oakland A’s are currently negotiating (preliminary talks) to extend the lease for a few more years, possibly 2025-2026-2027—three more years until their inauguration in Sin City.

The City of Oakland wants a guarantee that if the A’s leave, as expected as of today, in return, Major League Baseball will let Oakland have an expansion team. Sheng Thao, the Mayor of Oakland (currently under a recall campaign), might save her job if she can get such a deal.

Still, it is not a sure thing since the main reason for the recall by Oakland citizens is not about the A’s but about the crime in her city and lack of security. A year after she fired the Police Chief, a new Police Chief has not been named yet.

The Oakland Athletics inauguration in Las Vegas is scheduled for 2028, but expansion teams might not come until 2029. Oakland is not seen today as a possible city for an expansion team. Oakland would have to wait in line after Nashville and Salt Lake City, the current front runners for a new franchise. Commissioner Rob Manfred said, as recently as last week, that MLB will name two expansion cities by the time he retires, according to ESPN.

Let’s suppose the A’s move and open in Las Vegas in 2028, just like they have it planned. Oakland might or might not be one of those two expansion teams until 2029, five years from today. But, since Michel de Nostredame, aka Nostradamus, died in 1566, I do not believe there is anybody today alive in ESPN, the New York Times, Associated Press, Reuters, the San Francisco Chronicle, or the Wall Street Journal qualified to predict how this is going to end.

BREAKING NEWS: Drakes Brewery, a famous San Leandro brewery, just pulled their sponsorship three days before Fans Fest. Last Dive Bar, one of the organizers wrote on Facebook. The fan group said it had incurred expenses including “sponsor banners, a digital marketing package” and “rented equipment to set up a Drakes beer both.” The Oakland A’s deny they have anything to do with this

Around and around it goes, where does its stops nobody knows”. This was one of the lines from “Major Bowes Amateur Hour” a popular radio show that ran from 1934 to 1948, later made the transition to television as “Ted Mack Original Amateur Hour” and to their credit many stars were discovered in his show, including the one and only Francis Albert Sinatra.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s lead play by play voice on the Oakland A’s Spanish radio network on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and 990 KATD Pittsburg and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com