TORONTO — There’s growing interest in bringing major-league baseball to Vancouver, creating intrigue about the possibility of a second Canadian MLB team — yet significant questions must be answered before the possibility shifts from hope to something more tangible.
Last week, Vancouver city council approved a plan to “identify and evaluate” potential owners to bid for the right to seek an MLB expansion franchise.
For real traction to exist, MLB would have to decide to expand — a decision that has not yet been made and would require sign-off from the MLB Players Association. Commissioner Rob Manfred has said the league could consider expanding from 30 to 32 teams at some point, and it’s possible that expansion plans could be covered in upcoming collective bargaining talks following the 2026 season.
Until then, talk of expansion is largely speculative — and as Major League Soccer’s Whitecaps reportedly explore relocation, it’s a reminder of the challenges that would have to be resolved for MLB to believe in the city as a viable option for 81 home dates.
Even so, Vancouver’s efforts to land a team are intensifying with significant support behind the scenes and the endorsement of mayor Ken Sim.
With multiple parties now interested in bringing a team to Vancouver, a source familiar with the process told Sportsnet that the city will likely decide on a preferred candidate by the first week of August. At that point, city officials and the prospective ownership group are expected to engage MLB further.
Any serious candidate for an expansion franchise would need, among other things, billions of dollars for an expansion fee and a plan for a viable stadium. At least one of the Vancouver candidates has spent millions to explore the possibility with $7-10 billion in total funding said to be behind that push. Stadium designs are already underway for at least one group.
The Globe and Mail reported this week that Zack Ross, president of the Vancouver-based real estate company Cape Group, is behind one of the leading bids.
Along with Vancouver, cities including Portland, Nashville and Charlotte have often been discussed as possible destinations with the latter two cities viewed by some high-level team executives as ideal options should the league decide to expand to 32 teams like the NFL and NHL.
As for the Blue Jays, MLB expansion into Vancouver would mean relocating their Class-A team while also losing some of the nationwide grasp on Canadian MLB fans. Even so, they’d welcome the possibility of a second team.
“We are supportive of any effort to grow baseball in Canada, and that would include the opportunity to bring MLB to Vancouver,” Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro told Sportsnet.
Speaking in general terms during the 2025 MLB post-season, Manfred addressed the possibility of expanding to Canada.
“There’s no place you’re going to go where you’re not splitting the market,” he told Sportsnet colleague Shi Davidi. “I’ve got probably four clubs that think Nashville’s part of their market. I’m not being funny. Literally, they do. So whenever you expand, you’re growing the business, you’ve got another revenue-generating point. You’re going to get a big payment on the way in and one of the things that happens is somebody’s market gets nicked a little bit. So this market, Canada, is no different. The advantages that Canada has is there are places you can go that are distant geographically from Toronto.
“There are certainly other cities in Canada that would be viable expansion candidates.”
In Vancouver, a new ballpark would be needed as Nat Bailey Stadium, home of the Blue Jays’ high-A team, holds just 6,500. BC Place, home of the Whitecaps and the CFL’s Lions, brings significant logistical questions — some of which are contributing to an uncertain future for the Whitecaps, who may end up leaving the city altogether.
Scheduling is also a challenge at BC Place, with the Lions not playing their first game at the venue until Week 8 of the CFL season due to the World Cup. Plus, BC Place wasn’t designed for baseball, introducing other logistical challenges even as a short-term solution.
Even if those questions are all answered by a prospective owner, it’s possible MLB would see the rapidly expanding Charlotte area or Nashville as preferable options, or that other cities could join the chase.
Yet even in the scenario that Vancouver’s behind those places, there’s value in pushing for a seat at the table in case something unexpected happens and an opening emerges. The only way to capitalize on such an opportunity is to start now.
While Sim is supportive of the MLB expansion possibility, he has said no public funds or land will be given away. Still, co-operation from the city would still be essential when it comes to transit, parking and other infrastructure.
Since each prospective owner would have a different vision for a stadium, the city is narrowing the field of bidders to one this summer in the hopes of clarifying things as early as possible and focusing efforts on the best candidate as talks ramp up with MLB. By late July or early August, one bidder will be chosen.
But until MLB decides whether to expand, the discussion can only go so far. In the meantime, there are at least interested bidders backed by real money along with a willingness from the city to cooperate on a bigger push.