Tuesday, December 30, 2014

What Cities for What New Teams? Big League Sports

Or what "old" teams?  The Raiders and A's could move.

Look at the heart of America's land.  Look at the population centers.

Some big holes are thought to be Portland, Nashville and Charlotte for baseball in the bigs.
NFL Los Angeles for sure.  Toronto.  Places like Portland and Vegas
NBA is debatable.  Seattle and Louisville and other major league towns.
NHL.  We all think north.  Seattle, Portland.
MLS has plenty of spreading to do.  Hopefully to the likes of newbies like Austin and Las Vegas.

What do you foresee?


wikipedia.org/wiki/Outline_of_the_United_States#mediaviewer/File:US_population_map.png
Not the biggest red blotches, places like Austin, Wichita and Omaha/Lincoln aren't really represented in the Big Five sports.                                    It may be a stretch to say claim of Texas Rangers or Kansas (City) Royals for some towns.

I like the West Coast Clippers (travel) team to play in Seattle, Honolulu and an occasion in Anchorage.  An aircraft carrier in San Diego would be the bomb diggity.  Perhaps a permanent flotilla?  New age stadium excitement.  In 2200 A.D. would we have a floating field in New Orleans.  Think about land-use in the future.


See way way more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 
 Sample below:

Options Options Options. What about this Relocation & Expansion for 32 team MLB ?

Scroll down.  Vote.  Don't hesitate to comment.


Sunday, December 28, 2014

Brooklyn: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

And I'm only thinking one sport.  Duh nuh nuh nuh - nuh nuh, BASEBALL.

The market could hold it.  New York's two and Boston probably don't want it.  But the borough would!

How does this name sound?:  the Brooklyn Trollies, Trollyhoppers.  The Hopps.

The team could split time with Las Vegas.  Call them the "Jets" even.
I have thought of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Las Vegas before.

But yeah, anyway, Brooklyn.  Build a beauty of a ballpark with 35,000 seats in both locations.  It's an exciting thought.

Badass nostalgia.  Badass Americana.

Brooklyn/Vegas could be a Mean for central division alignment.  Or whatever.
Bump a team west in the American and National leagues.
The Royals or Twins could be west.  5 teams in each division is crisp right now.  I'd hate to be a pain again.  The Reds won the World Series but first they were the National League West Champs.

Another question I have:  Could the Brooklyn Hopps physically play at Jersey Ebbets Field?  Joysey.  Joisey.
 
It takes balls.  Bats and balls instead of Nets.  Mind blown.  Take the trolly.  Represent.

Did I say one sport?  Fibbed.  I wish NY sported the MLS team named the Brooklyn Ballers.



See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 
#MLBBrooklyn


Small Chatter. A Decade and Two Ago. #MLBExpansion and #MLBMontreal.

Ten years ago Canada lost half of it's Major League Baseball.  The Blue Jays have been World Series Champs.  Montreal's Expos never were.  No very French area has the diamond running strong.  Not New Orleans.  Not much of Canada.  As it stands there is only one Minor League farm system affiliate in the land.  Vancouver with Toronto's Blue Jays.

I'm glad D.C. got a team, even with the O-Birds in the area, and at Oh Canada's expense.  With expansion to Phoenix and Tampa late last century, it doesn't seem to be coming in awhile.  Maybe with an Oakland move, there will be relocation, but not to the east.  If Tampa's television market wasn't so big, I bet we would be talking about the Rays leaving for the likes of the land of Charlotte.

Popped open some unopened baseball cards for Christmas.  1993 Upper Deck and Topps.  Off the top of my head, I got a Colorado Rockies Joe Girardi.  Good catcher, and managment guy for among others, the Florida Marlins and Yanks.
espn.com

http://www.si.com/mlb/2014/10/26/tampa-bay-rays-move-montreal

Fun.  Being a bigger pack, there were plenty of new Florida and Colorado cards.  Certainly there were plenty of Expos in the pack.  I wonder when the Expos will, in name, be back.  Sometime before 2050?  Will the next northern baseball be in Vancouver before them?  Charlotte, Nashville and Louisville before Quebec?  Probably in Portland and Las Vegas before then.

More league talent giving room for big league growth?  It would be nice for the next MILB team that's struggling to maybe give Montreal a try.  What are the plans for Olympic Stadium?  It does get occasional MLS and CFL use among other things.  The largest seating in Canada with 65k seats but not cheap.  It seems like a costly beast.  It'll be interesting to see.

thebaseballhaven.mlblogs.com/2014/05/29/is-it-time-for-expansion-in-mlb-major-league-baseball-expansion/

Want some Expos stuff?:  click: A Collection Pieced Out. Some Given Away.

For talk that's more real concerning MLB or other league expansion, relocation (and co-location !!!), check out prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ and peruse the table of contents and index.

#MLBFlorida #MLBColorado 

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Charlotte: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

It has been pretty much expressed by Major League Baseball that an expansion is unlikely to occur anytime soon.  I would be hoping for the Rays to relocate.  But it seems like a fat chance because Tampa Bay has one of the largest television markets and that's very important to baseball.  Maybe some stadium thing will fall through in baseball-bored- migrated-snowbirdy Florida.  There are likely more NY fans in Tampa or much of the Citrus State anyway.

One would have to expect that the Queen City of the south is not far off from landing Big League Soccer for the Carolinas.  I hear the junior stuff going on down there is robust.

charlottehomeguide.net

MLB and MLS are missing but sure to come.  With  a cup to Carolina hockey's name you will likely have banners hanging from an arena for years to come.  You have shamed the like of Atlanta and showed the like of Lighning. 

As American as apple pie, I have no doubt Carolinians are.  And so the pie in the sky is definitely Major League Baseball someday.

Take a look at some alternative views below:

What sport could be played on Charlotte's infield? Soccer and NASCAR ???

Major League Baseball in Portland and Charlotte

MLB in Columbia, Carolina in general, and Charlotte 

Major League Baseball in Charlotte and Portland. And then Las Vegas and Nashville. No Expansion Team Necessary 

Orlando, Portland, Charlotte, Sacramento and Salt Lake City. Who deserves MLB more? NFL?
Some Failed Expansion Bids of the Past
Names for a Portland and Charlotte MLB team ***Work in Progress***



See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Monday, December 22, 2014

WNFL. You thought correct, the Women's National Football League


In the Women's Professional Football League, the kickoff was a success as the lady teams of barnstorming.

 See also (from the wonderful wikipedia) for a point of reference:

My hometown:    wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_Sizzle 
I think the Dayton Rebellion of the above WPFL sounded good.

americanfootball.ie/craigavon-cowboys-hold-open-tryouts-for-womens-flag-football/
Irish Flag Football Association


Good ladies sports blog:  wfbtalk.wordpress.com/tag/dayton-rebellion/

I have drummed the beat before about the success and some tie-ins with sexualization of womens' sports.
The WNBA is a success.  Likely to follow will be a more robust ladies soccer league, perhaps a cohort of MLS.  My personal favorite would be MLB.  Hockey and football are harder to sexualize, one would think, but there is already the likes of the Bikini Basketball League and the Legends Football League (AKA Lingerie League).  The obviousness of it all as exhibition.  But what about a pre-game or post-game exhibition for the big league big five circuit.  

I love the idea of a ladies team counterpart for each league and each team.  Maybe they're a warm-up act or maybe they're a closer.  Whether WNFL or LFL, the Lady Bengals or the Sister Steelers, the Bangals or the Squealers, padded up all the way for battle Sunday, I'm for it and I'm sure I'm not alone.

Dallas Diamonds

See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

#MajorLeaguesExpansion Look at Some Possibilities at ProSportsExpansion.blogspot.com for the Big Five Sports

An index link and table of contents is along the right-hand side.  INDEX

ProSportsExpansion.blogspot.com




Your city or your state is found in the index ----> (ctrl F)

The main squeezes:

#MLBCharlotte  #MLBPortland  #MLBNashville  #MLBLasVegas
#MLBMexico  #MLBMonterrey

#NFLPorltand #NFLLasVegas #NFLLouisville #NFLToronto #NFLCanada #NFLNordeForce
#WestCoastRaiders #PortlandRams #NFLLA #NFLLosAngeles

#NBASeattle #NBALouisville
#NBAPittsburgh  #NBACincinnati  #NBAMissouri #NBALasVegas

#NHLSeattle  #NHLPortland
#NHLAustin  #NHLLasVegas

#MLSMinnesotaSoccer  #MLSStLouis  #MLSAustinSoccer  #MLSSanMarcos  #MLSSanAntonio
#MLSPittsburgh  #MLSCincinnati  #MLSDayton  #MLSToledo  #MLSWestCoastGoats #MLSCharlotteSoccer


The main pinches:
#RelocateRaysBaseball #ColocateRaysBaseball
#RelocateAthleticsBaseball #ColocateAthleticsBaseball

#RelocateRamsFootball  #RelocateRaidersNFL  #ColocateRaidersNFL  #RelocateJaguarsNFL
#RelocateClippersNBA #WestCoastClippers



Not exhaustive or all-inclusive

#MLBVancouver #MLBSacramento #MLBSanJose #MLBPortland #MLBSanAntonio  #MLBNewOrleans  #MLBMemphis #MLBIndianapolis  #MLBMontreal  #MLBJacksonville   

#MLBOrlando  #MLBHamptonRoads #MLBVirginiaBeach  #NBAVirginiaBeach #NBARichmond #NBAElPaso  #NHLNorthDakota #NHLSouthDakota  #NHLBoise  #NFLBoise  #NBABoise

#MLBBoise  #MLSBoiseSoccer #NHLCleveland #NHLCincinnati #NHLIndianapolis #NHLMilwaukee  #NBATampa #MLSLouisville #MLBLouisville #NFLLouisville  #MLSLasVegas

#NHLAtlanta  #MLSoccerIndianapolis  #MLSoccerCincinnati  #MLSoccerCleveland  #MLSoccerPittsburgh  #MLSoccerElPaso #NHLOmaha

If you live in the midwest and wouldn't mind having a travel team representing you in the NHL, check out the INDEX and fancy the idea of a Great Lakes team.

West Coast brand, same deal.  Could you have a travel team deemed Midwest, Northland, Southland or East Coast?  Check it out.



INDEX


Hashtag your pick in the comments below !!!

The NHL in Lincoln-Omaha. A Big League Team for Nebraska.

Baseball and football enthusiasts alike are aware of the college world series in Omaha and the football in Lincoln, respectively.  Basketball, ...well, yeah the Cornhusker do have hardwood also.

For those of us not in the know sports-wise and/or geography-wise, Omaha and Lincoln are about 50 miles apart.  With Omaha's 900k people in the area combined with about 300k of Lincoln folks we're talking a million people near the arena in the hockey plains metro.

With college puck, there is more than one team in town.
It's location is 180 miles away from Sioux Falls, South Dakota which is another city in hockey territory.  Folks in the region generally are accustomed to driving. so, I don't know, maybe that's like a hundred miles to we the populated area dwellers.  A halfway stop-off for those from South Dakota that might trek to see a match is Sioux City, Iowa which is a better halfway option than what looks like an equi-distant journey to check out the Minnesota Wilde.  Options, options.  And well, some 200 miles from Omaha is also Kansas City and Iowa's largest city.  The Des Moines journey is closer to Omaha than Twin City bigtime.

I know this is perhaps more of a spiritual stretch than an economically robust option, but it's something to chew on while awaiting the economy of crops and figuring finance:  how the big leagues could be in Nebraska.               wikipedia.org/wiki/Omaha%E2%80%93Council_Bluffs_metropolitan_area

Hockey spectatorship is good in Omaha.

CONSIDER A TRAVEL TEAM for now.

prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/11/cities-on-verge-or-fringe-of-becoming.html

prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/11/your-home-teams-home-is-camp-regional.html

Montana, Wyoming and the Dakotas in Big Five Pro Sports. Idaho to boot.

Dakota NHL Team

NFL for Oklahoma City, Witchita, Omaha, Little Rock and Des Moines

Midlakes Mustangs NHL Expansion Team

Also check out the INDEX for teams that could theoretically travel to a camp/home game in Omaha like the Heartland Royals.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog ( see table of contents/archive):  Major League/Pro Expansion <CLICK> http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 
And please feel free to contribute your two cents with mine.

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Major League Baseball in Vancouver. And the possibility of other Big Leagues.

And one of the first things sports fan think of is the Vancouver Grizzlies, now the team in Memphis.  It appears that you only really cared about your ice mercenaries and Lions CFL football to begin with.

About 0.6 million people inhabit Vancouver city proper with 2.4 million people in the area, much like Cincinnati metro.  And to tell you the truth, had my Queen City of Cincinnati not had the original franchise for the big leagues I'm not so sure it would be looked at these days.  It may just now be a consideration for expansion with the metro population and heavy business presence yet it might fall behind Charlotte because of the lay of the land in terms of northeast/midwest team density.  But it was the first and has a strong baseball lineage.  So what about a baseball lineage for Vancouver?

hellobc.com
Vancouver has been a farm for big leaguers going back about a hundred years.  They're now the only minor league MLB affiliate team in Canada.  The Canadians are triple-A for the Blue Jays.

If ever an expansion team, I'd say a shared travel team with Portland and Las Vegas for a "West Coast" franchise would be great.  If anytime soon, it would just be wonderful if Vancouver had a share of the A's with Oakland, Portland and/or Vegas.  Athletics regular season camp for home games.  Does that sound good?  BC Place looks like it's about in gear.

Ditto for the Raiders on the NFL's West Coast.
And as far as the NBA, you would've been a great share of the West Coast Clippers with the likes of Vegas and Seattle.
         Deep Cove area by Vancouver
flickrhivemind.net/Tags/deepcove/Interesting
Perhaps you could even take the lead over Toronto entering into the NFL and be the Vancouver Rams.  Of course Los Angeles would seem to have a crack at their old franchise but you can say you have the stadium ready, not waiting.  Plus they could just get the Raiders back.  And too bad the Coyotes aren't a bygone brand reborn in the form of the West Coast Wolves to take on your Canucks in places like Anchorage and Seattle/Portland.

Look into a few more big league games each year for Canada's western capital.

You were the Atlanta hockey for the NBA.  Maybe these franchises of American birth can toe tap the water before going full speed ahead. 

For other mentions, click:
Regional Major League Teams. Travel Teams for a New Sustainable Market Expansion Model 

Another Canadian MLB Franchise? Vancouver Athletics and Raiders? And the Norde Force Canadian NFL Team.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Cuba. Major League Baseball in Havana Someday Sooner?

The city-proper itself has 2.1 million folks and is about 230 water miles away from Miami.  And embargoes look as though they are to ease.

Can the cigar economic boost and American travel alone create enough mogul seating and lavishness for MLB to consider it a viable option to house an expansion team?  As I've mentioned with Las Vegas before, would some warm casinos or Cuban tropical weather draw road game loyalist with another excuse to visit their team? 

I think a modest sized park of 30-35k seats with room to grow it wouldn't be a bad start.


www.todoviajes.com


NY Park called Clemente pictured below.

There is some MLB chatter on the net about this, but the business implications are still rough.  Cuba owes some U.S. businesses money as far as some American businesses are concerned.  All in all, one can venture a guess at improvement in the lives of Cubans.  In the years to come we wonder, will big league ball take on franchises in Puerto Rico and Cuba.




bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2014-12-19/obama-wagers-on-more-cigars-to-win-over-congress-on-cuba-embargo


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Harlem Globetrotters NBA Team

Harlem Globetrotters A-Team or B-Team NBA Travel Team
But what if there were a real Harlem franchise, giving a nod to a lineage circa the 1920s, that played the likes of the Lakers and Knicks?

The Harlem Globetrotters are perhaps the most famous travel team of all time.  Sure, they're showman, but wouldn't it be awesome to have a Harlem squad in the NBA?  The Knicks, Nets and Harlem's Globetrotters?  What if there was an A-Team and a B-Team, kind of like varsity and JV?  A third of a million people live in this neighborhood.  NYC could even have another MLB team with numbers the area touts and I'm not going to lie.  Even baseball in Harlem would be awesome

I would love Diamondtrotters or Harlem Trollyhoppers baseball but the market could definitely hold a team.  Right now of course, the NBA cannot though.  There are plenty of big league cities without a franchise on the hardwood.  Take a look at who has MLB and not NBA.   Hell, even Louisville and Seattle deserve it first.

So what I'm saying is this is certainly a pipe dream.  And too many hits from the pipe can be bad in so many ways.
Click theonion.com

See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Nashville: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

Nashville is home to some good ol' American (and arguably Canadian) spectatorship outside of the Grand Ole Opry.  You have NASCAR.  And for the past decades you've had big league claims.  The Titans and now Predators.

The most difficult and probably most coveted sport to land is Major League Baseball.  For many years, you have affiliated with big league franchises in your Triple A ballclub, the Sounds.  And in the history of the major leagues I'm sure Nashville will at some point be a big league baseball team.

Take a look:  bizjournals.com/bizjournals/on-numbers/scott-thomas/2011/08/methodology-for-sports-capacity-study.html  

Good news: tennessean.com/story/money/2014/09/16/nashville-economy-officially-top-b-mark/15725853/

A city as romantic and American as Nashville will get a team.  Your competition is Charlotte with an aesthetic honorable mention of Louisville and New Orleans somewhere down the line.  But for anyone, it looks later than sooner.

An artist's rendering of Nashville's new Sulphur Dell ballpark, set to open in Spring 2015  www.milb.com

The only inner-state rival is the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies.  Like Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and St. Louis, I doubt you're salivating at that prospect either.  I find it most impressive that Sound Town landed the NHL and I was unaware of a robust NBA attempt.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nashville_Predators
Nonetheless, it's impressive that in the east you would beat out cities the likes of Cleveland, Indy or Milwaukee for any such northern sport bid, especially after the capital of the south's failure for hockey.  Do some Nashvillians tire of rooting for the Braves?
 
Will some city in the east get big ball soccer before you?  Probably Charlotte.

By the way, Tennessee, I love your Tennessee Smokies team.  Someday, Nashville.  Someday.

In the meantime, think New Orleans Hornets-Oklahoma city ...
I believe the below links are the soonest options for a realistic shot, right now:

Tennessee Pioneers MLB Team Might Play where NFL's Titans Should. Sharing the State. MLB Memphis and Nashville.

Major League Baseball in Tennessee. How to beat out Charlotte for an Expansion Bid. New Brave King of the South.


Major League Baseball in Nashville and New Orleans

Time for more MLB in the South
Southtown Soundhounds MLS Franchise 
Major League Soccer in Nashville, Charlotte and beyond.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Soccer in Cincinnati #MLSCincinnatiSoccer

Though it's a nice thought, anyone worth their salt would tell you that we're not ready yet for Major League Soccer.

We have a lackluster case in the time-being.  Maybe there will be more upcomings with the rise of our youth.
It is America.  And Cincinnati seems true to claims of being the first truly American city with it being inland and post-Revolutionary; aka the first to not be British or Dutch.

Lackluster's case in point:  A google of the world wide web.  Bottom link with picture of PBS is your best view.  The NFL stadiums in Cincinnati and Cleveland would make for an interesting "Ohio Divided" travel team.  Check out INDEX and see Cincinnati.
Ohio United. Or call it an Ohio Divided Team. Cincinnati-Dayton Metroplex
Ohio Big 5 Experience: Cincinnati to Cleveland and through Columbus. NBA, NHL or MLS in Dayton or Toledo?
Ohio MLS. The C-Bus.

www.google.com/search?q=soccer+in+cincinnati&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8#q=cincinnati+professional+soccer

nationalpremiersoccerleague.com/home/744806.html
wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_soccer_league_system
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_Cheetahs
facebook.com/pages/Cincinnati-needs-an-MLS-team/126328554096889
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_Riverhawks

http://queencitysportreport.blogspot.com/2012/09/will-mls-ever-call-cincinnati-home.html

queencitydiscovery.blogspot.com/2012/04/major-league-soccer-in-cincinnati.html
queencitydiscovery
I think it would be cuddly cute if we had an MLS team called the Cagers, laying claim to who are the real footballers.  In America.  Allegedly. 

See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Houston: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

You are missing the NHL.  And a minor league hockey team for that matter.  Another shut-down.
The AHL flanks most of you in OKC, and in your neighborhood in Austin and San Antonio.
I would flat-out argue that the city of Austin deserves the NHL franchise way before Houston does.  The last thing the league wants now is for another failure reminiscent of Atlanta.

Too hot for ice.

Sorry.  No Big Five for you.

You guys are okay on the indoor sports with the likes of the Hot Rockets.  Hot Rockets are done within two minutes.  Salty or sweet, no need to melt the ice.  I hope knowing that the hockey just vacates is an ice breaker enough for you.





See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Alabama NFL. Green Bay is to Milwaukee what this Alabama town could be to Birmingham/Tuscaloosa

So, it's about a hundred mile hike to watch Wisconsin's brand of historic NFL play.

Let's say that the map online tells me that from Birmingham, Alabama to the Alabama town of Reform is 88 miles.  And roughly in between that is the home of the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa.

Economic development.  Segregating a Saturday trip from a Sunday tailgate.  I see more mecca for the state than just Talladega.   A relationship similar to the Milwaukee-Green Bay one and the namesake of Wisconsin.

click:  NFL in Alabama   
prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/04/give-exercise-try-in-your-mind-what.html



How 'bout them War Elephant Rollers?  Would this be a unifying proposition for football fans and Alabama's ecology?  2 shades of red?

North of 100, 000 fans in one place.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Milwaukee Bay in the NHL

You don't have the prowess of Green Bay without Milwaukee.  Green Bay Packer Backer Nation.


I like the ring to the name "Milwaukee Bay Backers".

The Milwaukee Admirals skate the area.  The town is with the Big 3.  But what about entry into the Big Four?  I enjoy the name of the " Bay Backers because it lays claim to Michigan's Lake namesake and could even insinuate claim to prime turf in Chicago.  And that sparks rivalry if I have ever heard one.  Or two.

So, if I can't have a share in the future of a Great Lakes named 
travel team, I like this for Milwaukee 
 
The Packers have part-timed in Milwaukee proper




UPDATE     UPDATE     UPDATE          JANUARY 2015



See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 



Minor League Soccer. A Travel Team Representing Two Towns or more.


East Coast Feds. Imagine this NHL Franchise

Should not the Panthers just vacate Florida?

How about as an alternative to total vacation, in the sense of the word meaning "totally vacating" Miami, let's turn the Panthers into a NHL Travel team that enters, let's say 9 newer American markets.

Imagine the NHL touching more of these markets:
Albany, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Atlantic City, Virginia Beach/Hampton Roads area, Louisville and Atlanta.

I have also dream-schemed a North Coast named team and other tweaks such as:
Northland
West Coast
Southland
Great Lakes

click:  Dakota NHL Team 

http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/09/at-least-two-new-american-nhl-teams-in.html 

prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/03/new-teams-for-big-four-tomorrow.html 

prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/09/more-major-league-cities-with-no-new.html

Is this East Coast enough ?  worldmapdownload.blogspot.com

Included in some of these are the above mentioned cities and the likes of OKC, Austin, Houston, Las Vegas, Portland and Seattle.

Any other names for an East Coast brand?
East Coast American MountiesFleet     Battle Group     Lakers     Blockade     Yankees
     Shippers     Workers     Blue Collars     Dockman     Colonials     Railers

What do you think?

See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

NHL Team in Austin and Las Vegas called the West Coast Cattle Drive.

Would putting a NHL franchise in Austin be ignoring Houston?  No great loss.  They could easily host exhibitions.  Maybe the ice melts faster in Houston than in Texas Hill Country.

Perhaps the factor of market saturation puts the puck more in Austin's court, the capital of Texas.

I'm not alone in thinking that the south, and anything with proximity to Arizona, needs to prove itself to the NHL.  The highest level of minor league hockey in the south is housed in the middle of the country.  It's Oklahoma City, San Antonio and Austin.  The Texas teams are pretty close to each other.

Las Vegas has a hockey team a league below the AHL that the above named are a part of in Oklahoma and Texas.

I say, market two birds with one stone.  Don't become another Atlanta (NHL failure).  So, that's another reason to snub Houston.  But consider new big leagues cities a turn in both Austin and Las Vegas.

What better name for a western team that is essentially a travel team or camp team, than the "Cattle Drive"?
Better than the Tumbleweeds?  Wolf Pack?  Wagon Trains?



wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Stars
wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Vegas_Wranglers

Cats          'Drivers'    ???    What to call them???

Time and affiliation could be had in Oklahoma City or the likes of Salt Lake City and Boise.

I'm well aware that perhaps singularly, Seattle and Portland deserve a NHL team and perhaps deserve the West Coast moniker if anybody does.  I'm not alone in thinking Arizona doesn't deserve it yet, especially when compared to some northern cities, not mentioning  those hockey fans more enthused in Milwaukee and Cleveland that aren't snowbirds.

View TV Metrics (NHL):  West Coast Whales NHL Team in Seattle, Portland and Las Vegas

Showgirls can wear cowboy hats, also, right?  www.las-vegas-shows-reviews.com
Austin:
State named teams. A Wider Geographic Home for the Big Leagues
NBA MidAmerican Express Travel Team (for Louisville, El Paso & Austin...and maybe St. Louis?) 
MLS, Will the Major Leagues land in Austin for the first time, or will San Antonio get that Soccer team before their capital city???



Further articles of shared Travel (region) teams in all of the sports, particularly a "West Coast" brand in every sports league, always touting Las Vegas, check out my table of contents or index to the right.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Major League Soccer in Nashville, Charlotte and beyond.

The Bootleggers.

How much badassery is in some 'leggers soccer of Appalachia.

Tennesee Bootleggers or Carolina Bootleggers?

As a travel team named "Appalachia" I envision one hell of a following in name and schedule.  If absence makes the heart grow fonder.  Anchor that bastard in Atlanta and see all of the other big cities, especially NFL ones that could house the team.

www.arc.gov/appalacian_region/MapofAppalachia.asp


Big stadiums with no Big Leagues?  Think Athens, Ohio and Knoxville.  Think West Virginia and 'Bama.  Lexington.

If not a leg or a foot, dip them toes in Atlanta, Nashville and Charlotte.  Not much of a stretch is Cincinnati or Pittsburgh either.  It was a nice thought anyway.


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

#MLSPittsburgh #MLSCincinnati #MLSNashville #MLSCharlotte #MLSAtlanta #MLSKentucky #MLSWestVirginia #MLSBirminghamAlabama #MLSYoungstown #MLSKnoxville #MLSAthensOhio

Ohio United. Or call it an Ohio Divided Team. Cincinnati-Dayton Metroplex Major League Soccer

Ohio United.  Or call it an Ohio Divided Team.  Cincinnati-Dayton Metroplex  NBA, NHL or MLS Team ??
United or Divided
The names obviously have more of a soccer MLS ring to it.  "Divided" especially with already a team in Columbus.

For any new MLS market, the name "Excited" sounds like some contemporary American word play.

Ohio has all of the Big 5 sports and it is uniquely spread to 3 of it's cities with the NHL and MLS being housed in the heart, the NBA nestled in the northeast along with the big two also securing the border on the southwest corner.
There could be thoughts of the NHL entering the Cleveland market or the NBA in Cinci, but obviously the balance is complicated with Columbus in the middle of it all.  The MLB isn't in C-bus.
It would be difficult to be called "United".

It would be unique to be called "Divided".
As far as big league Soccer, I am not ignorant of the absence of big market ball in Detroit or Indianapolis.  That's why I have given the thought before to placing a team perhaps in Toledo, Detroit and Indianapolis under the umbrella name of "Great Lakes United" or "Lakes Fleet of Feet",... you get the idea.
See:  Ohio Big 5 Experience: Cincinnati to Cleveland and through Columbus. NBA, NHL or MLS in Dayton or Toledo?

I think the MLS is already ready and poised for the NFL bighouses of Cleveland and Cincinnati.  "Ohio Divided" as an expansion team could work.  A dogpound/jungle cats and dogs alliance might be weird, but a game or two in the neglected corners of Ohio in the form of Athens and Toledo would be a good visit in idea or practice.

Ohio Divided might even be a thought for Columbus and Cincinnati versus Cleveland on the hardwood.

Ditto for Cinci-Cleveland in the NHL to Columbus.

Feasibility reguarding a NBA team for Cincinnati and Dayton combined is a thought.  Cinci-Dayton metro.
AKA Cincinnati-Dayton Corridor or Metroplex.
Some thoughts on some team names?
Cinci-Dayton United
CD, DC Metros
Ohio Divided
Queen City Sprawlers (suburban sprawl)

How about Cincinnati-Dayton Metroflex ?   ...'flex; not plex?
CD Metroflex.

Aeros          Cannons          Brigades          Grads          Natives          Flights          Wings

Pilots ?       Fleet?

? A Jets name in 3 of the five big sports?
? Two with Astros?

What do you think?


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 
 Samples:
A good name for the newest Cincinnati team.
Color Scheme Identity. The name Blue Collars not claimed after all this time.
Cincinnati: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

D.C. Baltimore United? Could it be? Congrats on the new Stadium.

Washington D.C. and Baltimore are butted right up against each other.

I find it a natural partnership. 
I don't find that thought unique.  The Orioles were the ballclub of the nation's capital for quite a few decades.  D.C. and Baltimore are part of one huge concrete blob. 

As a man in my thirties, I don't expect to see a NBA franchise in Baltimore in my lifetime.  Why?  The Wizards are pretty much right there.

D.C. is united.  In name, why not go further?  Balwash Corridor.  My countless vote goes for DC Baltimore United.

www.blackandredunited.com


washingtonpost.com/blogs/soccer-insider/wp/2014/12/17/d-c-united-stadium-approval-improves-its-playing-field-in-mls-in-many-ways/

dcunited.com/
www.mlssoccer.com/


See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

The Biggest Calls for New Big League Teams

The Biggest Calls for New Big League Teams in the Big Five


MLB in Portland and Charlotte

Can't the A's and Rays just vacate or co-locate with these towns now?


The NFL in Toronto, Portland and Los Angeles

It's time for Toronto to shit on our pastime.  Like the World Series in '93.  I'm just being cute.  And it won't hurt the CFL.  It will in fact be a sort of national team (full of mercenaries) playing their home games camped throughout coast-to-coast Canada.

If there were to be only a two-team expansion I would say a team should play in Portland and Los Angeles under the umbrella name of West Coast.  If a four team expansion, I would still call for a West Coast share that included Las Vegas, but balance would also have Louisville.

Cannot the Raiders and Jags commit this justice of balanced movement?


NBA in Seattle and Louisville

Whenever it would happen.  Seems like more talk of contraction for the basketball league these days.
West Coast Clippers could include places like Las Vegas and Seattle if they camped out with a new name.



80 miles from San Antone and twice as further to Houston lies Austin.  Name for this team?  Austin Texans.               Texas United.  Texas Divided.  Texas Republic.  Heart Texas ? ? ? ? ?

MLS in Austin

When is the Big Leagues going to land in this up-and-comer.  They are teased about big-time sandwiched between San Antonio, the big D and Houston.
Whataya' think of calling the club "The Band of Texans"?

And what about the first major Big Five Sport in Mexico to be MLS Monterrey ?
For the bigtimes in general, a good east-central-west balance for big five newbies would be Louisville, Austin and Las Vegas.


NHL needs Portland, Seattle and more Great Lakers
Great Lakers (your choice:  Milwaukee, Cleveland, Indianapolis and/or Cincinnati)
I would love this to be a region's own travel franchise.  The northwest-west could do the same with Portland-Seattle-Vegas.
Blandly speaking 40 home games could be split a number of ways.  For instance, in the Great Lakes Region:  10 games in each of the cities.  Or, since Columbus wears Ohio hockey already, let 15 games take place in Wisconsin and Indy while the corners of Ohio get to showcase 5 home camp skates a piece.  I would even like to see any combination with exhibition games fermenting the Great Lakes or Northwest/West Coast namesake.


I believe this to be a shake-up for the better in sports world North America.  It amounts to more people, space and coverage.

Click ----> INDEX to see combinations of teams and travel teams



See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#MLSMonterrey #MLSAustin #MLBCharlotte #MLBPortland #NFLPortland #MLBLasVegas #MLSLasVegas #NHLLasVegas #NFLLasVegas #NBALasVegas #NHLPortland #NHLSeattle #NBALouisville #NHLCincinnati #NHLIndianapolis #NHLCleveland #NHLGreenBay #NHLMilwaukee #NFLLA #NFLLosAngeles #NFLCanada #NFLToronto


Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Indianapolis: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

You got it, Indy.  Your presence is felt in the National Football League and basketball association.  Two of the Big Five.

And, as could be surmised from reading my blog, I have great appreciation for the generosity of your NBA team's first name.  Your claim is the entire state, not just by heart, but in name, even if apolis isn't much harm.

Americanly, there is a tumbleweed that blows through not just the fields and crossroads of Indiana, but through the very heart in the form of Indianapolis's area of around  2.3 million people, over 800,000 of which are in the city proper.  The twelfth largest city in the country is without it's major presence pastime.  The baseball.  The big league.  You have alcoholics baseball.  Sorry,...that was a bad attempt at a joke for AAA, aka Triple A baseball.  And you probably have many a major league fans that are at least on the geographic fringes of Cubs, Cardinals and Reds Country.  At the crossroads, you're a battleground and it's a good question to ask someone from Indiana.

Children's Museum at the heart of Indiana.  Not quite the dinosaur in the room.  And not quite out there, either.


Other cities nearer-by places that would vie for MLB love would be Louisville (the neighbor a short paddle away), Nashville and Charlotte.  So, I would consider you a shoe in if MLB was to expand by 4.

The NHL?  Your population and market saturation standing as compared to the likes of Milwaukee, Cincinnati and Cleveland seem to leave Indianapolis in a good position to face the Blue Jackets first, out of that lot.  Out of those mentioned and Atlanta, you seem to me the best candidate in the north, and top two in the American east for getting to the big skate someday.  The same could probably be said for Major League Soccer.

What would be a good name for the next Indiana team?
.blogspot.com/2014/03/any-good-logos-or-team-names-you-can.html

Would you like a travel team in the meantime? 

Crossroads Racers of Indianapolis and Louisville. A nifty example of a MLB team shared for Kentucky and Indiana and beyond


http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/2014/05/orlando-portland-charlotte-sacramento.html

Perhaps it is that folks in Indianapolis are so practical that I'm not seeing a robust movement or internet presence for calling out the fans, MLB-wise.


www.facebook.com/MLBnINDY

mlssoccer.com/news/article/2013/08/16/mls-expansion-hopefuls-indy-eleven-and-sacramento-republic-fc-each-hit-seaso


See your place in the Index Key
See much more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for the
footballs, baseball, basketball and hockey on my blog.
Contribute to the pages to the right and comment below.

prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com 

SCROLL DOWN TO VOTE and Comment 
 prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/  

Saturday, December 13, 2014

Oklahoma City: Visiting the Possibility of more Pro Sports

With 1.3 million people in the metro area, that's about a million less than my Cincinnati.  OKC's enthusiasm for hosting regular season games while New Orleans was in rehab showed the National Basketball Association that big league ball was a fit for Sooner than later.

wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_City
 
Also home of the Barons ( hockey),  Redhawks newly renamed the Dodgers (baseball team of Los Angeles affiliation) and a heaping of college football, it has to be considered more than ignored.

I-35 and OKC run through the heart of America
All that football 'round Okietown but not in the Big League.  Central city competition for NFL football might be more robust of a weekly attendance option.  Think of the main pigskin places in Arkansas and Nebraska.  And don't forget San Antonio.
click:  Oklahoma Oilers in the NFL

The sun will shine,...big and bright, clap clap clap clap, deep in the hearts of okies.  Someday. 

What a great Rangers rival it would be for MLB.  And KC.  And Minnesota
200 miles from Dallas, about 350 from KC and a thoughtful candidate in Little Rock, if ever a need for balance as a central expansion team, OKC looks to be it.  Omaha and Lincoln Nebraska combined equals the pop of OKC, even if they're baseball heart is the same.  Competition for the bid would be Nashville, which is longitudinally nestled between the National League Central cities of Chicago and Cincinnati. 

Since Texas has a stronger baseball presence than the south's sole claim in Atlanta, baseball's soul might lean to the tune of Nashville and Charlotte first.  But then that east lean might beckon balance for Portland in the west and a call for something central.  Anyway,..... moving along.

Hockey seems further off.  Houston doesn't even float or slide a team yet.  MLS maybe has better of a chance.

That football in OKC and Stillwater.  In Okie-miles that's those spots are the same distance as Cincinnati to Dayton.  Yep, the NFL seems the best bet of them all, enthusiasm-wise.


For more Oklahoma City big league sports options, to include travel teams, check out the index.

See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/ 

Friday, December 12, 2014

Some Mapping of Minor League Baseball. Triple A to one A and all the way to the Bigtime


Both Toledo and Dayton have a Fifth Third Field 



The Teams:
milb.com/milb/info/geographical.jsp
http://www.milb.com/milb/info/affiliations.

wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_baseball_league

http://imgarcade.com/1/baseball-teams-map/

oursportscentral.com/services/maps/


Attendance:
milb.com/news/article
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=neumann-110708_dayton_dragons_sellout_streak


The darker shades show more attendance.  Do you have an inkling for a team where you're at?
The Reds are in Florida, Kentucky, Ohio again, and Montana

HIGHEST ATTENDANCE
oursportscentral.com/services/maps/

HIGHEST TEAM ATTENDANCE
billsportsmaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/baseball_minor-leagues_84-highest-drawing-teams_2013-avg-attendance_all-milb-affiliated-and-independent-teams_drawing-over-4000-per-game_m_.gif

Is your city mapping itself out for pro baseball?
thestate.com/2014/04/06/3372033/columbia-faces-final-decision.html
wltx.com/story/news/local/2014/07/16/columbia-minor-league-baseball-team-loan

Does your city's development team fall within the League of Big Nations' borders?

nytimes.com/interactive/2014/04/23/upshot/24-upshot-baseball
cincinnatimagazine.com/features/the-big-sellout/


Fashion Bonus:  totalprosports.com/2014/07/31/21-crazy-minor-league-baseball-jerseys/


BONUS: A Snapshot of the Big time birth.

billsportsmaps



See more expansion, co-location and relocation talk for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer on my blog http://prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/