TORONTO — Major League Baseball has taken firm note of the surging Canadian interest in the sport, to the point that multiple cities in the country could be expansion candidates, league commissioner Rob Manfred said.
Speaking Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series between the Dodgers and Blue Jays, Manfred said expanding in Canada beyond just Toronto—MLB’s only team in the country for more than two decades—is a realistic possibility. Montreal, which was home to the Expos from 1969 to 2004, has been frequently mentioned as a candidate to regain a team, but the commissioner has also spoken favorably about Vancouver.
“There are certainly other cities in Canada [beyond Montreal] that would be viable expansion candidates,” Manfred said.
Manfred’s sentiment represents another data point in what has been an overwhelming success story this year across Canada amid the Blue Jays’ run to the World Series. The team’s clinching game in the American League Championship Series averaged 6 million viewers on Sportsnet, setting a record and representing about 15% of the entire country. That type of penetration is typically only seen in the U.S. during the NFL playoffs. More such milestones are expected in the World Series, which the Blue Jays lead 1–0 after a blowout win Friday night.
The Blue Jays currently have the largest territory of any MLB club, having the entire country of Canada and its population of 41 million to themselves.
“The Blue Jays have done a phenomenal job, not only in the home market but throughout Canada, developing an audience and developing a fan base,” Manfred said. “The viewership numbers we’ve had from Canada throughout the postseason are really a boost to the game.”
MLB’s expansion process, however, remains rather undefined. Manfred said last month at the Front Office Sports Tuned In summit that he would like to have two new markets selected before he finishes his tenure in early 2029. Those teams would likely not be on the field before then, though. Expansion would also likely be intertwined with large-scale realignment.
Nashville and Salt Lake City have been most frequently cited as the leading expansion market candidates, but nothing has been made official.
Gambling Watch
Like MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark did on Friday, Manfred expressed concern about the unfolding gambling scandal in the NBA. But he said he remained confident in the league’s current protocols.
“We are, and have been, really vigilant on the issues surrounding legalized betting,” Manfred said. “Our No.1 priority is to protect the integrity of the game. We think we have great systems in place. In addition, we’ve worked really hard to provide resources to players so that they are comfortable and have an outlet when they have a problem.”
Market Dynamics
Manfred, meanwhile, also agreed with Clark about this World Series—and the Dodgers’ ongoing might on and off the field—not being a referendum on the state of the game or upcoming labor negotiations between owners and players.
Clark previously called talk about the Dodgers’ supposed running of baseball “a lot of chatter,” instead pointing to teams that don’t maximize their opportunities.
“I don’t think who wins this World Series is any more relevant than who won the last five or six,” Manfred said of the labor dynamic. “Right now, I’m just focused on who’s going to win tonight. I want to get seven exciting games, and a year from now, we’ll have plenty of time to talk about labor.”
TV Talk
As has been the case for nearly two months, MLB has agreements in principle on new national TV deals with NBC Sports and Netflix, and a substantially reworked deal with ESPN, but the full deals are still being documented.
“We have agreements, we’re just working on the long forms, and as I have learned over the years, long-form broadcasting agreements take a long time to get done,” he said.
Olympic Watch
Manfred remains confident that MLB players will be able to compete in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The league has been working for years on the matter with both the LA28 organizing committee and the MLBPA on the many complex logistics around getting MLB players into a Summer Games.
“I am positive about it,” he said. “I think the owners have kind of crossed the line in terms of, ‘we’d like to do it if we can possibly make it work.’ There are logistical issues that still need to be worked on.”
