Montreal Expos, what's next? UPDATE 3/25 - Stephen Bronfman says “I think we’re close.”

[robert terwilliger]

All lf this is true for every potential relocation or expansion cities, not just Montreal. If having a stadium capable of hosting MLB team permanently was mandatory to get a team, Nationals would not exist,

it's been a while but i think they agreed to stick them in the football stadium temporarily, found a place at the end of 2004 and broke ground like a year later.

it's not about having a stadium to host them permanently. even temporarily. olympic stadium was out of date when the expos still existed. it's beyond lipstick they'd have to put on that pig. even to use the rays as an example, moving them from st. pete to olympic stadium with the possibility of a new park to come would be making a bad situation worse by a factor of 10. the marlins have a brand new park that for all of the many warts, is perfectly acceptable, if not drab by the new pictures. the white sox(lmao)

like i said, we do this every few months. another investor goes on radio or has an article written about them. this thread is bumped.

possible new stadium deal near youppi plaza?????

that would be the best! we need the expos back!

agreed! let's take the rays, move them up to montreal and call it a day!

yes! we'll surely draw when the yankees, blue jays and red sox are in town!

et all until the funding falls through. or this person was just spitballing the idea of an idea with no way to pay for it. or whatever else. the thread dies and drops back down until another bump when there's the possibility of finding funding for a stadium in a new referendum.

the a's and rays have more pressing stadium issues and mlb is incapable of figuring those out despite blue ribbon panels set up just to figure those out. imagine how low on the list of things to do bringing baseball back to montreal is for rob manfred:

1- change rules in baseball to make baseball more appealing to people who don't watch it
2- allow several teams to rake in money from revenue sharing and mlbam and not spend a dime of it to improve its roster
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166- meet with people interested in bringing baseball back to montreal
167- inquire whether they have funding for a new stadium (they never do lmao)
168- advise them to secure funding and get back to me in 4 years

 

[Mightygoose]

Yes, the Nats used RFK Stadium for a while. But the funding for their current park was in place before the move was approved. Otherwise, the Expos would have left earlier as there was no where else with a plan.

Same thing for potential return to Montreal. Stadium doesn't need to be going up, just the financing in place. Outside of that, the Expos won't return.

The real reason why the thread got bumped? They're in talks to acquire the land of their preferred site from Canada Land which was registered in December - something that wasn't happening a year ago.

If they get the land, they'll be a step closer to being on top of Manfred's list. If it takes a bit of time so be it....no one is in a hurry right now.

 

[blueandgoldguy]

is this just a thing in montreal where every few months someone goes "i'll tell you guys something, we're getting close to getting the expos back!" and then everyone goes crazy for a few weeks until we end up back at the same place:

- montreal still doesn't have an adequate ballpark
- nobody wants to build one unless there is a team on the way
- no team is going to be on the way until montreal has an adequate ballpark

i feel like phil conners here. the rays, the a's, the marlins, the white sox(lmao), give them to montreal! 8,000 fans a night history! youppi! calice!

I'm sure you know it actually takes time to put in place financing for a $500 - $600 million stadium - no small matter. There will be investment from the ownership group, probably a ticket tax to pay for another portion and then there is the delicate matter of convincing the city/province to fund a significant portion of it.

The potential owner is in the process of buying a piece of land near downtown that would be the site of the stadium. Then there is the matter of negotiating a sale price for the team which I suspect would be in the billion dollar range. Oh yes, there is also the matter of the lease in Tampa that the ownership group will have to deal with.

Obviously, stadium funding will be contingent upon the team moving to Montreal - not that difficult to understand. This is likely to be drawn out for several more years given all the moving parts so you best get used to the updates while the rest of us get used to your oh-so-witty remarks about how nothing has changed.

Just to add, there was no plan that fell through. What you are saying is incorrect.

 

[robert terwilliger]

just to add to your addition. i was using it as an example of why this thread would fall backwards and eventually be reupped.

like it or lump it, nothing has changed. some rich people can't accept that the thing that most of the city didn't care about got up and left. they like to tell old stories, talk to players about their time there and dream about stealing another city's team to play in a stadium they don't have the financing in place for.

what am i missing? oh, another plan for another site for another stadium that they still don't have money for? why should the rest of mlb care about a city that supports its team so well it's playing 600 miles south? shouldn't mlb be focused on other problems it can't fix rather than bringing another shit sandwich to the buffet?

 

[blueandgoldguy]

just to add to your addition. i was using it as an example of why this thread would fall backwards and eventually be reupped.

like it or lump it, nothing has changed. some rich people can't accept that the thing that most of the city didn't care about got up and left. they like to tell old stories, talk to players about their time there and dream about stealing another city's team to play in a stadium they don't have the financing in place for.

what am i missing? oh, another plan for another site for another stadium that they still don't have money for? why should the rest of mlb care about a city that supports its team so well it's playing 600 miles south? shouldn't mlb be focused on other problems it can't fix rather than bringing another **** sandwich to the buffet?

When the team played well, which was rarely, and made the playoff, which was one whole time, they drew well in comparison to the rest of the league...and certainly far better then Tampa. It's all about potential and the potential for higher revenues is far greater in Montreal then in Tampa. Might say the same thing for Oakland as well given the lower household incomes.

There is more wealth in Montreal
There is larger population in Montreal
There is more corporate support in Montreal.
The demographics (especially with relatively few transplants who cheer for other teams) are more attractive.
Their is less competition for the sports entertainment dollar in Montreal.

What you are missing is that it's the same plan, not another plan as you claim. Incremental steps are being taken to achieve the final goal. Is it guaranteed to happen? No, but attempting something this large with a large amount of private dollars required will need due diligence. This isn't Florida that appears to love 100% publicly funded baseball stadiums and arenas. If that were the case in Montreal, a baseball stadium would likely be approved pending a relocation of course.

The bolded is funny. I remember people saying the exact same thing about the prospect of the Winnipeg Jets coming back on the business boards prior to 2011.

 

[SSF]

funny, none of that wealth showed up in the late 60s through the early 2000s except for the Bronfman clan and Loria; which was one of the reasons Loria ended up getting the Expos, he was the only one willing to answer the cash calls.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

funny, none of that wealth showed up in the late 60s through the early 2000s except for the Bronfman clan and Loria; which was one of the reasons Loria ended up getting the Expos, he was the only one willing to answer the cash calls.

You realize how MUCH the economics of the game have changed since 2004?

Everyone get a 219M check nowadays. Revenue sharing and MLB Media. And I would bet that Bell will be part of ownership. Content for RDS and TSN all summer long. No intermediary. Straight cash from advertisers homie.

That's why they want in NOW! Because even when the team sucks, they will be profitable. MLB is probably the best managed league in NA. MLB Media, who all owners are equal partners of, kinda changed the game. Same with revenue sharing and the luxury tax.

 

[robert terwilliger]

my point stands. despite the tampa bay rays playing in an airport hangar in a different city, their attendance has never fallen to the point of the expos'.

 

[blueandgoldguy]

funny, none of that wealth showed up in the late 60s through the early 2000s except for the Bronfman clan and Loria; which was one of the reasons Loria ended up getting the Expos, he was the only one willing to answer the cash calls.

Who would ever guess the finances of a sport or prospective owners in a city could change in a few decades?

 

[blueandgoldguy]

my point stands. despite the tampa bay rays playing in an airport hangar in a different city, their attendance has never fallen to the point of the expos'.

With respect to competing baseball teams of their era, the Rays attendance has been worse then the Expos outside the lame-duck years of the late 90s/early 2000s when everyone and their dog knew the team would leave.

Rays pretty much at the bottom of the league every year. 17 seasons in last or second last place. Their best attendance was 7th of 14 teams in their inaugural season.

Tampa Bay Rays Attendance, Stadiums, and Park Factors | Baseball-Reference.com

The expos were last or second last in 6 seasons. 12 seasons in the middle of the pack attendance-wise. Top-4 in attendance five times. That is while having a fraction of the success of the rays - only qualifying for the playoffs once and playing in 2 stadiums that are actually inferior to the Sundome.

Washington Nationals Attendance, Stadiums, and Park Factors | Baseball-Reference.com

The numbers appear to favor the 'spos. Bigger city, bigger market, more wealth. Attendance, relative to other teams, is also in the Expos favor.

 

[Bjorn Le]

I did a comparative analysis of the attendance between Tampa and Montreal awhile ago (either earlier in this thread or in a past one). If you compare when the teams were both doing well, Montreal attendance blows Tampa out of the water. Tampa has never had good attendance, even their first few years were bad by comparison to most teams inaugural seasons. Montreal can point to several years of good attendance, and many more of at least average.

I'm not really sure how people are still skeptical about the return of the Expos. It's happening. Whether that be by expansion, or relocation. It will happen. I would bet in the next five years. Definitely before 2030. The arena has financing. The team has financing. What they're waiting for now is for Oakland and Tampa to solve their stadium problems. Once that is settled, MLB can approve the Bronfman group for either relocation of the Rays or expansion (likely paired with Portland). The buzz around the economic community in this part of Canada is that Bronfman is more or less 100% confident he is getting a team for Montreal. The question is when. Not if.

 

[Quid Pro Clowe]

Pretty sure Montreal went their last ~20 years without ever averaging 25k a game. The strike screwed them royally, but their attendance was an issue for a decade before it.

 

[Centrum Hockey]

I did a comparative analysis of the attendance between Tampa and Montreal awhile ago (either earlier in this thread or in a past one). If you compare when the teams were both doing well, Montreal attendance blows Tampa out of the water. Tampa has never had good attendance, even their first few years were bad by comparison to most teams inaugural seasons. Montreal can point to several years of good attendance, and many more of at least average.

I'm not really sure how people are still skeptical about the return of the Expos. It's happening. Whether that be by expansion, or relocation. It will happen. I would bet in the next five years. Definitely before 2030. The arena has financing. The team has financing. What they're waiting for now is for Oakland and Tampa to solve their stadium problems. Once that is settled, MLB can approve the Bronfman group for either relocation of the Rays or expansion (likely paired with Portland). The buzz around the economic community in this part of Canada is that Bronfman is more or less 100% confident he is getting a team for Montreal. The question is when. Not if.

With two expansion spots and two bad stadiums its could be like the late 90s NHL or NFL.If Nashville OR Portland make a strong pitch and don't get a expansion team they chould get the Rays or A's or Marlins.They have to keep a team in marlins park though even if Jeter burns all the Bridges in the city.It does not have to be the current one though it could be an expansion team or the rays.

 

[Mightygoose]

Deal reached with Bronfman and Claridge group to buy land at Peel Basin for potential stadium.

Deal reached on Montreal land development for potential MLB stadium site - Sportsnet.ca

No timeline on when the purchase will be complete or next steps on the stadium plan.

A long ways to go but MLB's potential return is a step closer today.

 

[BKIslandersFan]

Not sure why Montreal can't be given another team when DC had two before Nationals.

 

[razor ray]

https://deadspin.com/the-rays-drew-their-smallest-crowd-ever-1835088699

 

[Le Magnifique 66]

Was watching a bit of the game and noticed it was brutal, most where Jays fans on top of that horrible crowd
And to think they're off to an amazing start, imagine what it would be like if they would be dead last
Move them to Montreal already!!

 

[Blitzkrug]

I wonder if the city would be willing to play ball (no pun intended) if you sold it as a multipurpose stadium proposal since both the Alouettes and Expos need new digs.

I realize there would be massive logicistical hurdles with that since the CFL runs from June to Ooctober, but it might be worth a shot?

 

[SkalbaniasGhost]

I wonder if the city would be willing to play ball (no pun intended) if you sold it as a multipurpose stadium proposal since both the Alouettes and Expos need new digs.

I realize there would be massive logicistical hurdles with that since the CFL runs from June to Ooctober, but it might be worth a shot?

The stadium will have the ability to host other events(CFL/Soccer).Bronfman's group had an online questionnaire that had several segments devoted to interest in football(The questionnaire is no longer available).
Montreal Baseball Project asks fans to fill out survey about ball park

The ability for Mr Bronfman's group to be involved as a minority owner is quite likely(20% ownership
stake speculative).

 

[GordonGecko]

The Bronfmans are a-holes for letting the Expos get away in the first place. Now they have remorse. Guess the family was too busy drinking their own whiskey and joining sex cults (yes this happened)

 

[AdmiralsFan24]

https://deadspin.com/the-rays-drew-their-smallest-crowd-ever-1835088699

So right around the 2001 Expos average.

 

[robert terwilliger]

not sex cults!

 

[Clare2904]

The Bronfmans are a-holes for letting the Expos get away in the first place. Now they have remorse. Guess the family was too busy drinking their own whiskey and joining sex cults (yes this happened)

not sex cults!

Tell me more about these sex cults in Montreal

 

[GordonGecko]

these sex cults in Montreal

American made I'm afraid
US heiress pleads guilty in 'sex cult' case

 

[Clare2904]

American made I'm afraid
US heiress pleads guilty in 'sex cult' case

Damn it