Phillies

Rob Manfred Says MLB Expansion Provides an “Opportunity to Geographically Realign”

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Aug 18th, 2025 · 11:02 AM EDT

---

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred was asked about expansion during ESPN’s broadcast of the Little League Classic:

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred says expansion could spark major changes:

• Geographic realignment to ease travel
• A more appealing postseason format for partners like ESPN
• New opportunities in untapped markets

pic.twitter.com/5r0qXVYYni

— Front Office Sports (@FOS) August 18, 2025

“I think (expansion and realignment) are related in my mind. I think if we expand, it provides us with an opportunity to geographically realign. I think we could save a lot of wear and tear on our players in terms of travel. I think our postseason format would be even more appealing for entities like ESPN because you’d be playing up out of the east, out of the west, and that 10 o’clock time slot where we sometimes get Boston and Anaheim, would be two west coast teams, and that 10 o’clock slot, which is a problem for us sometimes, becomes a real opportunity for our west coast audience. I think the owners realize there’s demand for Major League Baseball in a lot of great cities and we have the opportunity to do something good around that expansion process.”

There are 30 MLB teams broken up into six, 5-team divisions. None of the major pro leagues in the United States and Canada have more than 32 teams, so if you push beyond that, you’re probably getting to the point where the talent pool is a bit diluted.

Proposals for a 32-team MLB, broken up into eight divisions of four teams each, usually include expansion Nashville and then one of Charlotte, Portland, Orlando, or a third Texas team. The Mariners and Braves are sort of isolated in their respective regions right now. MLB fans are typically resistant to change, but expansion being what it is, the opportunity to realign is interesting. Imagine dumping the useless Marlins and Nationals and playing in a division that includes the Yankees and Red Sox. Imagine week after week of games against teams with great fanbases and full stadiums. Who says no? You exile the Nats to some division with the Pirates and let the Braves and Marlins play the Rays and some expansion team. Apathetic baseball for apathetic fans. Everyone knows Atlanta is SEC football country anyway.