A survey by The Athletic reveals that baseball fans overwhelmingly prefer Nashville for a new Major League Baseball franchise. Portland edges out Salt Lake City among western contenders, while overall support for expansion to 32 teams remains tepid. The poll highlights ongoing efforts by cities like Salt Lake City to attract a team.
The Athletic conducted its annual MLB fan survey, asking 12,901 respondents to select two preferred cities from six with active expansion bids: Austin, Nashville, Orlando, Portland, Raleigh, and Salt Lake City. Nashville emerged as the clear favorite, receiving 73% of the votes and widely regarded as a likely recipient of one of the two new franchises MLB aims to establish before commissioner Rob Manfred's retirement in 2029. Manfred has expressed a desire for one team in the East and one in the West.
In the western race, Portland garnered 47% support, surpassing Salt Lake City at 30%, despite analysts recently naming the Utah city as a frontrunner. Portland's bid dates back to 2017 with the Portland Diamond Project, backed by investors including NFL quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara. Salt Lake City's effort, launched in 2023 by the Larry H. Miller Company through Big League Utah, recently gained momentum by recruiting former Atlanta Braves star and two-time National League MVP Dale Murphy, an Oregon native who has lived in Utah since 1994, from his advisory role with Portland.
Other cities trailed: Raleigh at 26%, Austin at 12%, and Orlando at 5%, with 8% selecting 'other,' led by write-ins for Montreal. On expansion itself, only 51% of fans favored growing to 32 teams, compared to 31% opposed and 18% undecided—a decline from 61.7% support in 2022 and 72.2% in 2023, when no 'no opinion' option was offered.
In Salt Lake City, excitement persists. Last week, the Miller Company unveiled plans for a $3.5 billion west-side development, including Jordan River restoration and a potential stadium site facing the Wasatch Mountains, where home runs could splash into the water. CEO Steve Starks said the firm is collaborating with architects on site orientation and seating. Sports radio host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo and other analysts have predicted teams for both Nashville and Salt Lake City. At a news conference, Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, R-South Jordan, envisioned, “This is the continued momentum on our promise to this area, to this neighborhood, to our community, to the river, to the lake and to our state.” He added, “With this dream: That in April of 2032, this river will be full of kayaks, canoes and fishing nets of people waiting to catch the first home run by a left-handed batter hit into this river with Utah’s Major League Baseball team.”
