Could the Game Truly Go International?

Could Major League Baseball truly go international and have a team outside of the United States? This may be harder to answer than I make it out to be but truly I believe the game could with a little creativity and lots of security. Already Major League Baseball has a team in Canada and with the growing love for the game in South American countries such as Cuba, Venezuela and Mexico to name a few a team could end up there in the near future in my opinion.


Revenue in MLB rose to just under $9 billion during the 2014 season without tapping many potential markets outside of the United States and around the globe and it continued to soar sky high is 2015 as well. The move outside the United States would have to start slow and start small with a team right over the border in Mexico, Monterrey maybe or even Mexico City, and security would be a nightmare to begin with but if MLB could make this work then the sky is the limit for the league. With the popularity of baseball in countries like Japan, Korea, Cuba, Australia, Columbia, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and even smaller countries like Curacao the game could explode internationally and truly set itself apart from the rest of the sports world.

It’s a dream now as we stand here in 2016 but this, in my opinion, is and should be the long term goal and vision for the game. Call me progressive and call me a dreamer but its coming ladies and gentleman so prepare yourselves for it.

MLB European Games to Come (Hopefully) Within Five Years

Major League Baseball and Commissioner Rob Manfred were pushed to the aside a bit at the GM Meetings in Boca Raton recently by the GM of the New York Yankees, Brian Cashman. Cashman sent two of his young talents in separate trades for Aaron Hicks and Ronald Herrera forcing me to miss the news that Major League Baseball wants to play regular season games in Europe within the next five years while also returning to Mexico for the first time since the 1999 season. Rob Manfred wants to grow the brand and especially grow the bran internationally and it seems like all hands are currently on deck to make that happen.

The line of thinking from Manfred, MLB’s chief legal officer Dan Halem and the rest of the representatives from the league is that the more you play and showcase the game in these countries on a continual basis, rather than a sporadic basis, the more development and interest you will subsequently see from that particular country.

You also cannot forget about MLB’s plans and efforts to at least get spring training games played inside the country of Cuba as well which is a significant part of growing and expanding the brand as well. The last time baseball was played in Mexico was August of 1999 when the San Diego Padres and the New York Mets played a three-game series at Monterrey, Mexico after the Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres opened the 1999 season there as well in Monterrey.

MLB is looking to add these countries and possibly more to the list of places where they have played regular season games. That list includes Tokyo and San Juan, Puerto Rico to name a few. Europe, specifically London, Cuba and Mexico may all see Major League Baseball coming to a town near them very, very soon.