Charlotte MLB Team Speculation

[KJHburg]

2 hours ago, Phillydog said:

Can a city the size of Nashville support 4 major league teams in a state with almost 4 million fewer people than North Carolina?  I have always taken with a grain of salt the explanations for why a state with as many people as NC, with three of the biggest TV markets in the country, and a conurban area of over 7 million people doesn't have an MLB team.  

Short answer no and I have seen no movement in Nashville for a MLB no stadium in sight except a NFL stadium and the local Nashville Davidson govt. is having financial problems already.   it is just a typical bargaining chip to get Bmore to pony up I guess but I thought Camden Yards is one of the nicest stadiums in the city.  I think the Washington Nationals really affected their attendance as when I lived in the DC area many would trek up to Baltimore for a game or two but not anymore. 

Edited August 14, 2019 by KJHburg

[jednc]

21 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

Short answer no and I have seen no movement in Nashville for a MLB no stadium in sight except a NFL stadium and the local Nashville Davidson govt. is having financial problems already.   it is just a typical bargaining chip to get Bmore to pony up I guess but I thought Camden Yards is one of the nicest stadiums in the city.  I think the Washington Nationals really affected their attendance as when I lived in the DC area many would trek up to Baltimore for a game or two but not anymore. 

What exactly is it that you think they are trying to get Baltimore to pony up for? Not sure I'm following.

[KJHburg]

3 minutes ago, jednc said:

What exactly is it that you think they are trying to get Baltimore to pony up for? Not sure I'm following.

I have no idea maybe more season ticket commitments or stadium upgrades or something.  I don't think they are leaving Baltimore but they seem to be worried they might move. 

[jednc]

2 hours ago, Phillydog said:

Can a city the size of Nashville support 4 major league teams in a state with almost 4 million fewer people than North Carolina?  I have always taken with a grain of salt the explanations for why a state with as many people as NC, with three of the biggest TV markets in the country, and a conurban area of over 7 million people doesn't have an MLB team.  

There's no way Nashville gets an MLB team ahead of Charlotte (unless it happens so far in the future that Nashville has passed Charlotte in size OR unless it's because the current owner dies and his son, who already lives in Nashville, wants to move the team there). I'll hand it to Nashville. They're on a roll with what they've accomplished lately. I know lots of people will say they just got an MLS team ahead of Charlotte (even though Charlotte wasn't in that race really). But, MLB is in a completely different stratosphere compared to MLS. Getting an MLS team is a much smaller feather in their cap than the NFL (and at least traditionally the NHL) and won't make any difference when an MLB team is looking for a new home.

[jednc]

2 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

I have no idea maybe more season ticket commitments or stadium upgrades or something.  I don't think they are leaving Baltimore but they seem to be worried they might move. 

Right...but the rumors are not coming from the Orioles organization based on the articles (one of which actually says the team has no plans to move). This is just people speculating...like so many like to do on here. There's nothing wrong with it, until someone starts giving it any credence at all. Then suddenly, things are blown out of proportion. Just like someone mentioned above. The Panthers were never leaving Charlotte. But, since L.A. didn't have a team back in those days and Jerry was getting old and having heart problems (or more recently when he did sell the team), we had pages of debate on here about the team moving. It was NEVER going to happen, but somehow we gave weight to ridiculous speculation.

I, like you, predict the Orioles don't move. If they do, I assume it will depend on the new owners more than anything but unless someone from Nashville buys the team and is hell-bent on moving them to Nashville, I can't imagine that happening. Heck, even if someone from Nashville did buy the team, I still think they'd pick Charlotte over Nashville. We're double their size in metro terms and I have no idea how many times larger when you take into account the 100 mile radius population (maybe 3.5 times?).

[Skyybutter]

The O's ain't leaving B-more. No way no how.  Im not sure why Nashville gets what it gets. Country music..sure. But other then that...I got nothing.

   Charlotte is dripping with money. And people in Charlotte dont mind spending their money. Charlotte is borderline flashy tacky. But I love it nonetheless.

 

[KJHburg]

What team would move to Nashville and this planned stadium next to where the Titans play?

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2019/10/01/nashvilles-mlb-hopefuls-reveal-stadium-renderings.html?iana=hpmvp_nsh_news_headline

Nashville is smaller metro than Charlotte and has 2 major leagues and a 3rd MLS coming.  Or this a field of dreams that is proposed?  

[eastsider]

Just one look at that rendering will tell you that its just a fantasy proposal.

[CLTProductions]

Delete

Edited October 2, 2019 by Jayvee

[elrodvt]

1 hour ago, KJHburg said:

What team would move to Nashville and this planned stadium next to where the Titans play?

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2019/10/01/nashvilles-mlb-hopefuls-reveal-stadium-renderings.html?iana=hpmvp_nsh_news_headline

Nashville is smaller metro than Charlotte and has 2 major leagues and a 3rd MLS coming.  Or this a field of dreams that is proposed?  

Less dreamier than Charlotte but no way.

[Hushpuppy321]

Denver Colorado - A Major US City, Major Metropolitan Area, Big visionary investments in Mass Transit, and with 6 Professional Sports Teams (NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MLL, MLS).  Very impressive indeed.  I think that Charlotte’s dream of an MLB Team will all but crumble if we’re awarded an MLS Team in December.  

Even though NC is a Top Ten State In Population and growing, being situated on the East Coast which is already saturated with Iconic Baseball Teams (and Mega-Cities) makes a future franchise distant at best in my opinion.  Denver has benefitted from not only being a cool growing place but also because it’s the State Capital as well as the only Major Metro in Colorado whereas Charlotte competes with ATL and Raleigh-Durham.  Also Denver has no meaningful Peer Metro Area competition for many many hundreds of miles away.

Also - even though I love Charlotte I think the area cannot handle anymore Professional Sports Teams.  I do think North Carolina can (Population, TV Rankings, $$, etc.) But would maybe need to be a Triangle based team since it’s Soccer hopes seem to be quickly fading...

Charlotte = NFL, NBA, MLS, MLL is a very decent showing along the tough as nails East Coast.

Raleigh = NHL, MLB would be cool too.

I eagerly await your cheers and jeers!!

[kermit]

19 hours ago, Hushpuppy321 said:

Charlotte = NFL, NBA, MLS, MLL is a very decent showing along the tough as nails East Coast

nitpick: Charlotte MLL is just theoretical at the moment. The Hounds suspended play before last season started and said they 'might' come back. Its not a sure thing. The league is kinda flakey as well.

Edited November 27, 2019 by kermit

[CTiger]

17 hours ago, Hushpuppy321 said:

Also - even though I love Charlotte I think the area cannot handle anymore Professional Sports Teams.  I do think North Carolina can (Population, TV Rankings, $$, etc.) But would maybe need to be a Triangle based team since it’s Soccer hopes seem to be quickly fading...

Charlotte = NFL, NBA, MLS, MLL is a very decent showing along the tough as nails East Coast.

Raleigh = NHL, MLB would be cool too.

I think it is kind of weird to think Charlotte can't handle any more pro sports teams.  Can't people be fans of multiple teams at the same time?  Me being a Panthers fan hasn't made me any less of a Hornets fan, so why couldn't I also be a fan of whatever MLB team we would theoretically get?  I struggle with that point.

Also, I'm sure this has been discussed ad nauseam somewhere on this board, but what are the odds that the Hurricanes would ever relocate to Charlotte?  Its impossible to deny the synergies of having an NBA and NHL team in the same city and same arena.  Also, PNC arena is getting old, its disconnected from the heart of Raleigh, and the Hurricanes are consistently in the bottom 3-5 in attendance.

[a2theb]

26 minutes ago, CTiger said:

 

Also, I'm sure this has been discussed ad nauseam somewhere on this board, but what are the odds that the Hurricanes would ever relocate to Charlotte?  Its impossible to deny the synergies of having an NBA and NHL team in the same city and same arena.  Also, PNC arena is getting old, its disconnected from the heart of Raleigh, and the Hurricanes are consistently in the bottom 3-5 in attendance.

I remember a year or two ago there was a discussion around them playing a couple games a year in Charlotte. Not sure whatever became of that but I would fork over so much money for Canes games if it didn't mean driving the 3 hours to Raleigh to see them.

[Hushpuppy321]

2 hours ago, CTiger said:

I think it is kind of weird to think Charlotte can't handle any more pro sports teams.  Can't people be fans of multiple teams at the same time?  Me being a Panthers fan hasn't made me any less of a Hornets fan, so why couldn't I also be a fan of whatever MLB team we would theoretically get?  I struggle with that point.

Also, I'm sure this has been discussed ad nauseam somewhere on this board, but what are the odds that the Hurricanes would ever relocate to Charlotte?  Its impossible to deny the synergies of having an NBA and NHL team in the same city and same arena.  Also, PNC arena is getting old, its disconnected from the heart of Raleigh, and the Hurricanes are consistently in the bottom 3-5 in attendance.

Yeah I see your point.  I think that Corporate Sponsorship and ticket sales, Box Seats, etc. would be at a saturation point if we had 5 or 6 professional teams in town.  Also - Fans spending would probably drop too due to so many games spread out among the different teams.  Don’t even get me started on what’d happen during a Recession with discretionary spending.

I’d love to see the Canes play in Charlotte too but I think they’re heavily a Raleigh/Triangle Team.  Established fans might feel betrayed if they moved to Charlotte.  They seem to be more of a North Carolina based team and Raleigh is more centrally located to NC than CLT

Edited November 27, 2019 by Hushpuppy321

[Richhamleigh, DC]

Back when Atlanta was the size of Charlotte it had 4 major league teams.  Cities and states that are smaller than Charlotte and North Carolina support 4 major league teams.  Colorado,  Missouri, and Arizona. Cities like Cincinnati and Cleveland are smaller CMSA's with  NFL and MLB teams.   They seem to think Charlotte and Raleigh are too small to have teams from "Charlotte" or "Raleigh".  It has to be "Carolina".  So, let's think about that... The "Carolinas" are the biggest TV market in the country without at least one baseball team.    "Carolina"  Not including Wilmington, Charleston, Myrtle Beach) is the third biggest TV market in the country.  With 4.175,000 households, only NY and LA are be bigger.    With JUST Charlotte, Greensboro, and Raleigh TV markets (geographically similar in size to Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Denver, Phoenix and Dallas), the TV market would be 2.973 million households.   That would make "North Carolina" the 4th biggest TV market in the US.   I know that it's more than TV market but corporate sponsorships (NC is home to XX Fortune 1000 companies?).   North Carolina is the largest area without dedicated team loyalty.  We aren't Braves or Nationals fans.  Most of us may be more likely to be Yankee or Red Sox fans.  The notion that North Carolina can't support a MLB team is BS.   Build the stadium next to a downtown railroad station in Greensboro and fans could enjoy getting there without driving from Raleigh, Durham, Charlotte,  Winston, and anywhere else along the NC High Speed RR corridor.    

Edited November 27, 2019 by Phillydog

[csweet]

Isn't BB&T Ballpark built so that it could be expanded in the slim chance that Charlotte did get an MLB team? If so, that is a great case for a future expansion or relocation. Along the lines of the Hurricanes, it would be amazing if they moved out of Raleigh. As mentioned by CTiger, PNC is out of the way and sells half of the tickets to students for $15. Something needs to change, and I think that a move down here would boost attendance and corporate sponsors as well. 

[15895]

54 minutes ago, csweet said:

Isn't BB&T Ballpark built so that it could be expanded in the slim chance that Charlotte did get an MLB team? If so, that is a great case for a future expansion or relocation. Along the lines of the Hurricanes, it would be amazing if they moved out of Raleigh. As mentioned by CTiger, PNC is out of the way and sells half of the tickets to students for $15. Something needs to change, and I think that a move down here would boost attendance and corporate sponsors as well. 

 

Pretty sure that the ballpark took so long to get built because Jerry Reese, the owner or former owner, whoever he is/was,  wanted a stadium that could accommodate MLB in the future and they fought it out in the courts. The Current Stadium can not be converted to MLB.  You could get creative, but thats so unlikely. Especially if more  development occurs in outfield.

[Matthew.Brendan]

Modern MLB needs a smaller stadium anyhow. No need for 50,000+ seats.

There are 7 MLB stadiums with <40,000.

 

[eastsider]

10 hours ago, csweet said:

Isn't BB&T Ballpark built so that it could be expanded in the slim chance that Charlotte did get an MLB team? If so, that is a great case for a future expansion or relocation. Along the lines of the Hurricanes, it would be amazing if they moved out of Raleigh. As mentioned by CTiger, PNC is out of the way and sells half of the tickets to students for $15. Something needs to change, and I think that a move down here would boost attendance and corporate sponsors as well. 

If they Hurricanes move, they are not moving to Charlotte. The Spectrum Center was not designed with hockey in mind, the ice surface is off-center which causes poor/obstructed sight lines.

[atlrvr]

There's going to be an empty stadium/ballpark size site available in the next 4-5 years not too far from BB&T Ballpark.  Just saying...

[jednc]

On 11/27/2019 at 2:26 PM, Phillydog said:

Back when Atlanta was the size of Charlotte it had 4 major league teams.  Cities and states that are smaller than Charlotte and North Carolina support 4 major league teams.  Colorado,  Missouri, and Arizona. Cities like Cincinnati and Cleveland are smaller CMSA's with  NFL and MLB teams.   They seem to think Charlotte and Raleigh are too small to have teams from "Charlotte" or "Raleigh".  It has to be "Carolina".  So, let's think about that... The "Carolinas" are the biggest TV market in the country without at least one baseball team.    "Carolina"  Not including Wilmington, Charleston, Myrtle Beach) is the third biggest TV market in the country.  With 4.175,000 households, only NY and LA are be bigger.    With JUST Charlotte, Greensboro, and Raleigh TV markets (geographically similar in size to Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Denver, Phoenix and Dallas), the TV market would be 2.973 million households.   That would make "North Carolina" the 4th biggest TV market in the US.   I know that it's more than TV market but corporate sponsorships (NC is home to XX Fortune 1000 companies?).   North Carolina is the largest area without dedicated team loyalty.  We aren't Braves or Nationals fans.  Most of us may be more likely to be Yankee or Red Sox fans.  The notion that North Carolina can't support a MLB team is BS.   Build the stadium next to a downtown railroad station in Greensboro and fans could enjoy getting there without driving from Raleigh, Durham, Charlotte,  Winston, and anywhere else along the NC High Speed RR corridor.    

You make so many excellent points. Unfortunately some guy from New York has rolled into town and vomited his opinion that we won't be getting a team, so I guess that's that. Gosh I love newcomers who come here knowing everything about us.

On 12/2/2019 at 9:55 AM, AirNostrumMAD said:

 

Pretty sure that the ballpark took so long to get built because Jerry Reese, the owner or former owner, whoever he is/was,  wanted a stadium that could accommodate MLB in the future and they fought it out in the courts. The Current Stadium can not be converted to MLB.  You could get creative, but thats so unlikely. Especially if more  development occurs in outfield.

Jerry Reese is an attorney and never owned the team. He had aspirations to own a major league team and didn't want the city to get involved with a minor league stadium when he felt we should be thinking bigger. His objection was based on the idea that if Charlotte helped the Knights it would prevent any help he might need to obtain a major league team. His biggest problem was he had no prospects of owning a team here himself and didn't want any progress to be made on the minor league side.

[KJHburg]

will the Tampa Bay Rays be looking to a whole new market or would they move to Montreal full time?  from this it sounds like they wont stay in St Pete and maybe not even Tampa.  

https://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2019/12/04/kriseman-rays-end-negotiations-over-split-montreal.html

[Hushpuppy321]

Anyone think the Raleigh may have a shot in the future of obtaining an MLB Team?  Would it thrive there or better here and why?  Only asking because I just read a TBJ Article where Developers & Steve Malik (soccer) are still requesting public money from Raleigh/Wake County for some type of Downtown Stadium (Soccer I guess).  But - With their MLS hopes gone I wonder if MLB could have an opening in Raleigh in the distant future.

On 12/2/2019 at 8:02 PM, atlrvr said:

There's going to be an empty stadium/ballpark size site available in the next 4-5 years not too far from BB&T Ballpark.  Just saying...

East or West?  North or South of current BB&T?  That’d be weird having two (2) baseball stadiums so close.  I wonder if BB&T could be retrofitted with 15K bringing it to 25K Capacity, a nice ‘intimate’ ballpark.

[Tyrone Wiggum]

15 hours ago, Hushpuppy321 said:

Anyone think the Raleigh may have a shot in the future of obtaining an MLB Team?  Would it thrive there or better here and why?  Only asking because I just read a TBJ Article where Developers & Steve Malik (soccer) are still requesting public money from Raleigh/Wake County for some type of Downtown Stadium (Soccer I guess).  But - With their MLS hopes gone I wonder if MLB could have an opening in Raleigh in the distant future.

East or West?  North or South of current BB&T?  That’d be weird having two (2) baseball stadiums so close.  I wonder if BB&T could be retrofitted with 15K bringing it to 25K Capacity, a nice ‘intimate’ ballpark.

I know I seem like a negative Nancy and a wet blanket, but by the time Raleigh could support an MLB team MLB may be very well be irrelevant.  

I may be a broken record, but lemme say it again: baseball doesn't want to be in half a dozen markets it's already in; it's not going to trade metro areas that don't support baseball for even smaller metro areas....