12/18/24
June 20, 2019
The Tampa Bay Expos? The Montreal Rays?: Tampa Bay Rays receive permission from MLB to explore playing games in Montreal as two-city team
I'd like an ExRays t-shirt.
posted by beaverboard at 04:03 PM on June 20, 2019
If MLB can allow a Florida franchise to expand its logistical horizons beyond the US border, there's no reason why some operations at Mar-A-Lago couldn't be headquartered in the Dominican Republic. Such as Food Services and Pest Control.
posted by beaverboard at 04:11 PM on June 20, 2019
Move the Rays there permanently. This would require a name change; perhaps to Les Voyagers or some other French-Canadien sounding name. The next thing to do would be to replace Baltimore with Detroit. Now you have a division with built-in, year-round rivalries in baseball and hockey. Imagine a late season baseball game with postseason implications between Boston and Montreal. It's not that long a drive between the cities, and it could prove to be intense.
posted by Howard_T at 04:33 PM on June 20, 2019
Because they want to play before empty stadiums in two cities? Planning for climate change?
posted by kokaku at 05:51 PM on June 20, 2019
I have relatives who live in Montreal. It is cheaper for them to fly to Tampa to watch the Canadiens play than it is to attend a game in Montreal. I would expect baseball would be much different as like Toronto hockey is the only sport where consistent demand exists regardless of team performance.
Where in Montreal would they play? The Expos failure was also largely tied to the team having to play in a facility built by government (and gangsters) with taxpayers money which wasn't designed primarily for baseball. Real estate is scarce there ... and very expensive. It would take a private owner with extremely deep pockets and the proper "alliances" to pull off a proper facility there.
posted by cixelsyd at 11:09 AM on June 21, 2019
Well, the Montreal games will be played in Durham, NC until Montreal gets a baseball-only stadium built. The Tampa games will be played in Flin Flon until further notice. All season tickets will be honored for the games played in Reno.
posted by NoMich at 12:33 PM on June 21, 2019
The Snowbirds.