Friday, February 26, 2016

Kansas City Showmen. NBA

Missouri and St. Louis are the Show Me State.  Have the NBA play in KC (the new arena) and in St. L.  Should we just call them the KC-St. Louis Showmen?

The last (and only to my knowledge) tag-team (multi-town) team in the country was in the NBA for the Kansas City-Omaha Kings which played in a third town (St. Louis, also).  With the shiny new arena in Kansas City, I'd like to see this work out.  But in truth, I advocate for Louisville and major pro sports in Kentucky first.  I would've loved the Kentucky or Louisville Clippers.  Or Seattle for that matter.  Perhaps the next NBA four will be Seattle, Las Vegas, Missouri and Louisville.

Would that be a nifty deal? 

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Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Could Volleyball be the Next Big Five or Six Sport?

Could it become really big in North America,...America?  More boys programs are popping up in the U.S..  It's a good option to basketball and wrestling.

I revisit the question of what is going to be the next big thing.  Soccer is on its way.  But what else?  Lacrosse (filed hockey) or Volleyball.  I like team sports.

Is there anything innovative out there or in the works for team sports?  One team versus another leaves for a 50/50 shot.  What about 3 teams playing each other at once?  The only sport I can think of in my head that could field 3 teams, although it could get crowded, is playing "21" in basketball.  3 three-man teams?  Maybe dodge ball will take off with some kind of cool format.

BUT VOLLEYBALL:
Ball State
You don't need that many people.  It can happen indoors in the Winter and outdoors in the Summer.  There are courts attached to bars and bowling alleys.  Sand season or court season.  Think tennis, clay and grass.  There could be two separate seasons and/or leagues.  It can take up less space.  Easier to do a pickup game.


Manhattan v. Long Island.  
UCLA
South Boston v. Boston Proper
Westside Cincinnati v. Eastside Cinci
Dayton taking on D.C.
Long Beach (CA) v. South Beach (FL)
New Orleans Parishioners v. the Boise Boys

Imagine a clubhouse or coliseum with an indoor and outdoor section.  It could have a retractable roof with the outdoor court sliding floor.

On and on.
And can we see it being co-ed at a high level, guys and gals?
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Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Minnesota. The State Claimed by All Teams in Name

Twins
Timberwolves   
Wild
Vikings
and FC United

Minnesota is the only state in the Big 3, 4 or 5 that makes such a large claim.  Technically, someone could pull out "New York" on me, but that's just technically.

Regionally, four of the big five sports have a tag.  Carolina's encompassed claim is in the NHL and NFL.  Golden State is in the NBA, and New England has NFL and MLS turf.  Only Major League Baseball is left to get on board.  And there are two existing choices of franchise to make it work if they wanted.  Tampa has good television rankings (seemingly the most important factor) but poor attendance (and too many Yankee transports).  Oakland "needs" a new ballpark or maybe "or-else".

I think the Rays or A's could become a West Coast or East Coast share.  I'm for the West Coast Athletics to part-time in another place.  Las Vegas seems to have the perfect temperament for that.  Or choose Portland, Sacramento (California A's), Inland Empire or even Vancouver.  East Coast Rays could be Charlotte or Montreal.  My main preference would be for the Florida Marlins to tag between the two current MLB cities, freeing up the Rays for some tag-team combination between Nashville, Charlotte and Montreal.  But anyway.

A regional name to match the prowess of a regional sports network is a nifty idea.

Carolina, New England and some California does it right.  Minnesota does it right.

Have any sports relocation, expansion or co-location ideas?

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Monday, February 22, 2016

My Proposal for MLB in Columbus

In a magical imaginary expansion at the clash of Reds and Indians Country, I'll pretend it's part of a two team expansion.  I might even pretend it's down the road and by then Montreal, Charlotte and maybe even Nashville already have their MLB teams.  And since Ohio has two teams, I might have to pretend Indiana finally gets there.  But anyway, yeah.....it seems a long way off.  But I really want to figure out what the name would be if there was a team soon.

What could we call the team?
Clippers
Cadets
Cosmos   Cosmopolitans.   Cosmonauts sounds cool, but it's kind of Russian.

Columbus Clippers would be freed up for Triple-A baseball somewhere else.  The list of places that could sport an AAA team seems to be much shorter than that could sport an MLB club in the next 15 years.

But what are your thoughts?

Next Big League in Buckeye's Columbus
Major League Baseball in Vancouver and Montreal. Make it one team. North Country Lumberjacks
The Next MLB & Minor League Expansion and thoughts on a More Competitive Player System

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Sunday, February 21, 2016

Xavier and Mount St. Joe's Combining for Football ???

These universities are 13 miles apart.  Many basketball fans are aware of the existence of X's basketball program.  Mt. St. Joe, as it is known on the streets, featured the courageous lady fighting for her life as she played on the basketball team.

In 1990 Mt. St. Joseph University, the then College of Mount St. Joe' started football.  It's a Division III program.  X had football up to 1973.  They started in 1901.  The joke still goes that they're undefeated since then.  If you're from around the Cincinnati area, you know about Lions football and also Xavier University, namely their basketball.  So what if they collaborated and combined for one purpose:  a football team?  Mt. St. Joe has the stadium.  Funds and drives could upgrade the stands for sure to bring the team into a future of Division one ball.  And what could we call such a team?

The Muskie Lions?  What kind of logo could we come up with?

Mt. Saint Joe Xavier Muskies
What do you think?

Logistically, I'm surely ignorant of some factors.  But I enjoy gun-to-your-dome scenarios.  Perhaps a basis for scholarship to whichever school could be academics.  I'm sure these Christian schools could work something out and grow from being a D3 to a D1 school down the road.

Any Christian collaboratives or any schools on any level in your area that you could see doing this?

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Saturday, February 20, 2016

Map of N. American Big Pro Sports. 12 Longitudes of Sport Towns

Have any comments or input?

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Map of N. American Big Pro Sports. 9 Latitudes of Sporty Towns

Canadian Football League St. Louis Team?


The Baltimore Stallions were the only American team to ever win the cup, the very next year folding with all of the other short-lived CFL American teams.  Baltimore shortly thereafter hijacked the Brownies from Cleveland to become the Ravens evermore.

Could the Stallions be resurrected with alliteration and pomp in the Gateway to the West?
Any thoughts on any of this?  
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Defunct American CFL Teams 
CFL Expansion: An Experimental Regional American Team

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Friday, February 19, 2016

NHL for Canada & NFL for America. Heart can apply some over Mind

It seems like more American cities wish they had an(other) NFL team of any other sport.  And that probably goes without saying for hockey and Canada.  Some of the places you might overlook on a map could be an adequate market for these two leagues.

Major League Soccer takes less than 20 billion bucks to be a franchise in a market.  It's probably 50 billion for the other football and a touch more for hockey and hockey comes in second place in number of dollars needed for a franchise, only to MLB (circa $100 billion).  But hockey and football are about 50 billion required for each market.

But anyway, the love for hockey can certainly support another team for Toronto and it is argued the same for Canada's other biggest cities in Vancouver and Montreal.  And many say the passion for hockey is so deep, hockey could be a solid float on the ice for grounds like Halifax.

For football, being a weekly ordeal and tailgating, could imaginatively be most anywhere and thrive, from Little Rock, Birmingham, Portland to Boise, and another vacant week in Boston (aka when the Pats have a road game).  But if there were ever two teams around Boston (Foxborough), of course we have the issue of business canabalization and time slots, not to mention how genius the broadly named New England tag was placed upon the franchise.  Around the same time in the early 70s, the same could be said of a b-ball Golden State brand.

And since we're on these thoughts, let me lip off a bit:  Toronto deserves more hockey as much as NYC deserves its baseball.  I'd however urge Toronto's suburbs to take on a more broader Ontario base by name.

And it deserves it more than expanding turf into the desert.  And even before Vegas, Portland or Seattle should be getting the kind of love that won't flirt with being like the Panthers or Coyotes.

And me lipping off some more:  Toronto and Louisville should be getting the looks for NFL's next come around.



Any thoughts on any of this?
  
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Thursday, February 18, 2016

The Obvious Choices for No More Big League Teams, Part II

Essentially, here's the list:   


New York, Chicago, and finally (again) Los Angeles.  They like to double up.
Denver
           D.C.
                   Dallas
                               Boston
                                          Philadelphia
                                                             and now Minnesota
                                                                                  Baltimore/D.C.
                                                                                                      Bay Area (Oakland, SF)
And look at the five areas that have two baseball teams.  These areas are large.  Having 2 baseball teams, in just a matter of an afternoon drive apart, is a big deal.  Baseball takes about a billion bucks in market.  All the others sports are less than half of that.  Those areas of twice the baseball are NYC, LA, Chicago, the Bay area and the D.C. area.

That's eleven areas and once upon a time and on the fence again is the capital of the south, Atlanta.   In the ballpark of closeness was St. Louis.  Times change.  Long ago, when IT was to be in the Big 3, my Cincinnati was a part of it.   

But with these areas listed, it's not to say that the likes of Baltimore, Oakland or San Fran, and the squeeze that is New Jersey (in between Philadelphia and NYC), won't come up with another club in fifty years.  In the future, Baltimore and New Jersey could have a squad in the NBA againAnd we can envision more basketball, football or hockey in Chicago, though it likely won't be for a long time.


Part 1: The Obvious Choices for No More Big League Teams

So, which city is next for a second (or third) team?  For baseball, I would bet the crowded area of New Jersey if I had to pick.  But I could see Chicago getting more NBA before another NHL one.  Dallas could creep in more baseball, but new turf will have to be covered first, so any of this isn't going to happen anytime soon, maybe....probably not in our life time.  There is seemingly four cities at least in line in each league.

Across from Oakland in San Francisco
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Wednesday, February 17, 2016

American Attitude Change for Sports Facilities. The Environment !!!

Or plainly put:  American Attitude Change for Sports Facilities NEEDED.  The Environment !

I saw a hometown Cincinnati article about pro soccer appeal and MLS business foresight.

It got me thinking about a MLS stadium.  And I've blogged about good locations in my Tri-State area to think about having the site for this place.  But it got me thinking with concerns to both footballs, the weekly venues that they are, and how often times they're heavily crowd vacant.

Frankly, I get annoyed by team owners claiming need for a new place for just them.  I understand the want, but not the need.  When once a week at best you get to see your team, what's the big deal?  Is it the ambiance of the place or the game action?  Are we talking a true fan base or are we talking about water slides and lattes?  I kind of get it.  But Paul Brown Stadium where the Bengals play can be an adequate place.  Nippert Stadium, as newly overhauled as it is, is a romantic place for soccer.  Taxpayers also pay for them.


Get my drift?  The places exist.  College stadiums are everywhere.  And an issue of contention is building more of them, especially when an owner wants a lease and doesn't even want to pay for that to dig into their profitable profits.

And, the environment.


Choke up some more space?

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 prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/   

CFL Expansion: An Experimental Regional American Team

A Canadian Football League franchise based in two American cities could be playing their (home) camp games once a month.
Let me give you some examples.

West Coast Phantoms would play in Las Vegas and Portland (or an Oregon college stadium).  So, there would be one home game per month in each city.  Would it work better in the other legacy city of Sacramento?

The beauty of any of the examples I give is that stadiums don't have to be built.  CFL American teams could just lease existing college stadiums.

Would this work better than the first example?:  a Western Cattlemen brand in Austin or San Antonio and Las Vegas or OKC?  What about the Midland Cattledrive skipping Vegas and camping in Omaha?

Would something like a Southern Drive housed across the south do well?  I'm immediately thinking of the likes of Little Rock, Jackson (Miss.) and Birmingham.

The Ohio Brigades could have housing in plenty of places covering each corner from Athens to Toledo to Cleveland and Cinci with Columbus in between.

Midland Power from Omaha to OKC?  East Coasters in Hartford, Hampton Roads and Orlando could be a plan.  A Brooklyn based Trolly Dodgers club just evokes excitement in my mind.

I could see a standalone working well is the CFL in Louisville:
Kentucky Downs. The NFL in Louisville

Oklahoma City could work as well:  
Oklahoma Oilers in the NFL

I see this travel-tag-team regional team way as a toe-dipping way of doubling down, but as a safer gamble in market testing. 

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Samples:
Major League Baseball in Vancouver and Montreal. Make it one team. North Country Lumberjacks

Arizona Major League Soccer Franchise should be placed in Tucson
Major League Baseball in Vancouver and Montreal. Make it one team. North Country Lumberjacks

 
 


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 prosportsexpansion.blogspot.com/   

Orlando NFL?

Don't get your footballs twisted.   Just because it's Disneyworld doesn't mean it's Disneyworld.

There are plenty of dreamers out there in the sports world just like me.  But get out of town!
Especially outta' Jacksonville first.  Could it work?  Yes.  But unfair to the likes of Louisville and your flaunting of weather is enough.

bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2016/01/nfl-or-bust-orlandoans-ready-to-score-a-pro.html

Now?  An NFL team in Orlando now?  ...With the existence of Tampa and Jacksonville in North Florida???
See more examples of my expansion/relocation rationales:
Major League Baseball in Vancouver and Montreal. Make it one team. North Country Lumberjacks
 
 
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Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Travel Team for a Southwest Major League Soccer Franchise

Think of a travel team that tag teams towns.  I'll throw a couple names in the hat:  Las Vegas, Glendale/Phoenix or Tucson, Albuquerque, El Paso or Central Txxas in Austin or San Antonio.  I have no doubt some of the mentioned are destined for MLS pretty soon. 

But what about the meantime and the MLS exposure.  Sure, it can be watched on television, but what about the kid in San Antonio that catches more of their MLS glimpses from the internet than any kind of competitive soccer on a field?  Could there be a Southwest United or Rattlers brand?  There could be shielded logo and one of the 'gliphics on the shield for SW United could be a Rattler representing Las Vegas.  Say Albuquerque or Santa Fe chooses the image of a Freight train (Express).  Perhaps Vegas is snake eyes.  There are many ways to roll out this franchise in part or in whole.  And there are many regional themes.  West Coast.  Western.  Great Lakes.  Southland.  East Coast.  North Country.

Just some thoughts.  Gun to your head, how would you do it?
Samples:
Bootleggers United
Great Lakes SC. Major League Soccer. By Popular Demand?
Map of Major League Looks for MLS
Arizona Major League Soccer Franchise should be placed in Tucson

Major League Baseball in Vancouver and Montreal. Make it one team. North Country Lumberjacks

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Sunday, February 14, 2016

Chicago's Second NFL Team Name

For the longest time, Chicago was the second largest market in America.  It borders Milwaukee yet still is a North American enclave despite not being near an international Tijuana or Detroit.  It has two big league baseball squads, along with 2 other big cities and essentially 4 areas (NYC, LA and incl. Bay and D.C./Balt.).

And those other cities have two teams in other sports, baseball being more than twice as hard business-wise to justify having a team in market.  And besides, Los Angeles's vacancy about to go double down again on crowd's with LA home games weekly, why not more for Chicago and the midwest?

I wonder which sport the folks of Chicago would like another team in.  For many markets many might say football, which can be a sufferable week in between games for the fans.  It has seemingly been 'dat way for duh' Bears.  Even though there could've been a Chicagoland Clippers and I'm sure the NHL loves having them as a cozy backup along with Toronto if ever need be for a franchise relocation.  Well, let's talk about it another day.

But what about Midway?  I've blogged about it before but what about Chicagoland?  What's a good mascot to side near a historical Bears team?  Soldier Field has Chicago Fire neighbors, so what about some boys in blue?  Chicagoland Troopers.  Midway Battlers.  Beat Washington to the punch for Warriors?
Whatcha' got?

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Will Chi-town ever get another Chicagoland team?

Chicagoland's Second Team. And America's Team. The "Midway" Expansion Team in America's Heartland

Friday, February 12, 2016

Bootleggers United

Bootleggers United would make a helluva' brand.  The possibility of apparel for fisher and hunter country....well, yeah.  Imagine a new way for a franchise to call more than one town home.  Major League Soccer could have more camps instead of homes, even if only to flirt with markets

I'm sure more than a few folks would share in the brand and love to watch it in their town, especially anything within or in proximity to Appalachia.  I've blogged before about some kind of neato' Appalachia United Bootleggers brand, but now I want to float more camps into the geography.  Before Atlanta magnetized the MLS to its area, I considered it to be along with Nashville and Charlotte.  And I may have mentioned Knoxville or Chattanooga.  I believe the brand could even camp comfortably from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati.  Charleston, WV wouldn't be bad.  And Birmingham.  Think Little Rock.  The first year for the club could be a controlled chaos.

Twice a month Bootleggers United could call a place home/camp, one month in a place like Little Rock, and in two weeks later Charlotte or Raleigh.  This could be tried at all of the aforementioned locations over the course of two seasons to tighten up the decision on camps.  It's testing waters and seeing where it could work best.  Market analysis on where Bootlegger United items are bought up and the obvious indicator of where seats are quickly filled, televisions are glued to, are measures that can be monitored to do so.
Others names for a regional southern brand I have considered are Southlakes Fisherman (hockey) and a Hunters brand.
Do you have any ideas?


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Let's Get a Bootleggers Major League Soccer Brand in the South
If Ever a Big League Team in West Virginia
Team names for future franchises and expansion (Regional Teams)
What sport could be played on Charlotte's infield?

Thursday, February 11, 2016

50 Years Ago the NHL Doubled the Size of its Business

Boston, New York and Chicago were in place on the American side.  But the league was about to double its size 50 years ago.  6 franchises now added another 6 to play against.  Below is a throwback article from the Hockeywriters.  Two teams came into California and Pennsylvania and one in Missouri and Minnesota.


Snagged from wikipedia:  A study published in April 2011 by the University of Toronto's Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation concluded that Canada can support 12 NHL teams, twice the number it had at the time of the study, including second franchises for Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.

wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential_National_Hockey_League_expansion

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

The Obvious Choices for No More Big League Teams

You probably know who you are.  But maybe not.
Broncos, Rockies, Nuggets, Avalanche and Rapids.  Denver is done.  Sports options all year round.

Now, for the likes of Cincinnati, well, we do have our college teams and some minor league action as options to cover all the seasons.  Basketball and hockey can tide over from Bengals to Reds and we can go with a back-up squad, from Xavier, Miami to maybe even Ohio State.


Okay.  So.  Some Big Fives 


Denver
D.C.
Dallas
         Boston
                     Philadelphia
                                           and now Minnesota

Baltimore(?), you're pretty much lumped in with the geographic reality of Washington D.C..   And the Bay Area, even though it may feel oceans apart in what used to amount to 17 miles apart for Major League Baseball in between that balance of around 10 miles apart like Chicago and New York and a 30 mile separation for LA area clubs, San Fran-Oakland is kind of one.  The Bay

I did not forget one of the largest markets of all, Chicago.  Or top dawg, New York.  NYC likes to double up in everything like LA does.  Los Angeles goes forever after losing their two football clubs and when they return, they insist on two again.  Big markets.  NYC can argue for a 3rd baseball team in the business sense.  But listen, Chicago could go for something like another NHL, NFL and NBA team down the road.  It used to be the second largest and is still the 3rd largest metro in America.

Some of those on the verge of being Big Five, like Atlanta (once floating an NHL team before it relocated) and Detroit won't take too terribly long.  Likely not even as long as LA, considering how fast MLS is tackling turf growth.  And St. Louis will be without formidable pigskin for awhile, no doubt replaced by the other brand of football to suit it.

Toronto, Arizona and Houston are missing one sport.  And if you have read more of my blog than not, you would know that I advocate a little something different for those areas.  And respectively, those are CFL stadiums, Tucson and Austin to offset any market saturation concerns.

Any thoughts?

Which city is going to get their second or third team next?:

The Obvious Choices for No More Big League Teams, Part II

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Another Canadian MLB Franchise? Vancouver Athletics and Raiders? And the Norde Force Canadian NFL Team
Arizona Major League Soccer Franchise should be placed in Tucson

Austin Texas Big Leagues. Bring it

A Travel Team in Big Five Sports. Could it work?
Detroit Arsenal Major League Soccer Expansion Team 
Two Teams for a Town in a Sport. Who has got Next?
Another baseball team in Phila and Dallas ???
New NBA Team for Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Louisville. Tri-State
Kentucky Downs. The NFL in Louisville
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