MLB is pursuing the addition of two expansion teams targeted for 2031 or 2032, with Salt Lake City and Nashville as leading candidates. Expansion would raise the total number of teams to 32 and would likely require divisional realignment. The most recent expansion occurred in 1998 with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays, while the first expansion took place in 1961 with the Los Angeles Angels and a new Washington Senators franchise. The last realignment happened in 2013 when the Houston Astros moved from the NL Central to the AL West. Expansion could necessitate reducing the 162-game schedule for logistical reasons, which may face resistance from the MLBPA. A Bristol Motor Speedway regular-season game set an attendance record of 91,032.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred discussed the league's interest in adding two expansion teams and the opportunities that could come with the move. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, MLB expansion remains on track in the next five or six years, with Salt Lake City, Utah, and Nashville, Tenn., the favorites to get teams: Expansion still is scheduled to take place in 2031 or 2032, Manfred tells owners, with Salt Lake City and Nashville as the two heavy favorites.
The potential additions of a Salt Lake City and Nashville franchise would bring the total number of MLB teams to 32 and likely necessitate a realignment. The last realignment took place in 2013, when the Houston Astros were moved from the NL Central to the AL West. MLB expansion could lead to reduced schedule If MLB decides to expand, some believe it will result in the end of the current 162-game schedule.
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