MLB should get creative with where the Toronto Blue Jays will play baseball in 2020, and send them to Nashville.
The Toronto Blue Jays received some bad news from the Canadian government Saturday, and just like that, MLB finds one of their teams homeless a week from Opening Day.
Big picture wise, the decision makes perfect sense. In fact, it should come as no surprise to any baseball fans if MLB finds themselves in this position again before the season is over. The Blue Jays supported it immediately, as public health and safety must take precedence.
But let’s shift now to the baseball big picture, and how MLB is being gifted a great opportunity. Perhaps somewhat lost in the shuffle of testing stories over the past week is the fact traction is gaining for an MLB expansion team. No less a baseball figure than Dave Dombrowski has been tied to a push to bring MLB to Nashville.
The path forward for the Toronto Blue Jays is clear: MLB needs to tell them to take their talents to the Music City for the rest of the 2020 season.
There have already been rumors of the owner of the Triple A Nashville Sounds owner pushing to be allowed to host a series of exhibition games for free agent players that aspire to end up on an MLB roster this season. Clearly then, plans must exist for getting the Sounds facility baseball ready in a hurry. It would seem equally clear that part of the incentive for MLB to have interest in that specific location is a desire to further test the public appetite for professional baseball in Nashville.
You know what’s better than fake baseball? Real baseball.
Will fans necessarily be in attendance? The Sounds owner certainly hopes things reach that point, though that’s not essential to this being a good test for baseball in Tennessee. Television ratings are king this season, and MLB can certainly track what kind of bump the Blue Jays receive.
Geographically, the move makes more sense than you might think at first look. Remember, the NL East is the interleague sparring partner for the AL East this year. While Nashville is obviously farther away from New York and Boston, it’s much closer to those games in Atlanta, Miami, and Tampa. The travel time to the D.C. area is really a push. Plus these are flights we’re talking about anyway. So it’s slightly more airtime, but still keeps the travel in the Eastern United States.
Bottom-line, MLB and the Toronto Blue Jays need to make a decision pronto. This solution, while unorthodox, would kill two birds with one stone. Make it happen Manfred.