Which Cities Could Support a Major League Baseball Franchise?

If major league baseball ever decided to expand, or if an existing franchise wanted to relocate, which areas of the country could support a MLB franchise? In order to determine this, I looked at three sets of Statistics.

1) Number of TV Homes in Area - since teams derive the majority of their revenue from TV today, this is the most important factor.

2) Size of Population in Area - obviously, the more people in the area the easier it'll be to have fans.

3) Attendance at Minor League Baseball in Area - if an area supports minor league baseball, it'll probably support a Pro team.

Tennessee Region (Memphis/Nashville/Knoxville) - while these three cities are not that close together, combined they are a powerhouse that could easily support a MLB franchise. As a combination, the three cities would have over 2.1 million TV homes (would rank 9th in country), well over 3 million in total population, and over 1.3 million people attended minor league games last year in these three cities. The area already supports pro sports teams in every major sport except baseball. Great growth potential in this market.

North Carolina Region (Charlotte/Raleigh-Durham/Greensboro) - combined, these areas would rank 12th in TV homes with 1.74 million, just behind Detroit and ahead of Tampa, have over 3 million in total population, and well over 1.2 million people attended minor league games in the region in 2005. The area already supports Pro teams in Football and Basketball. A team would do great here, the area has great population growth trends.

Indianapolis (Ft. Wayne) - Indy could probably support a team by itself, but add in the Ft. Wayne market and its a slam dunk. Combined, the area has 1.3 million TV homes (ranking ahead of St. Louis), over 2 million in population, and roughly 850,000 people attended minor league games in the area. Indy already supports Pro teams in Football and Basketball.

Sacramento (Modesto/Stockton) - this region reaches 1.3 million TV homes (19th in country), boasts nearly 2 million in population, and over 1.1 million people attended minor league games in the area last year. The A's and Giants would throw a fit.

San Antonio/Austin - this area reaches 1.3 million TV homes, boasts over 2 million in population, and roughly 1 million people attended minor league games in the area last year. The Astros would probably throw a fit.

Norfolk/Richmond - this area reaches 1.22 million TV homes, has over 2.5 million population, and over 900,000 people attended minor league games in the area last year. Combined, these two cities could pull it off.

Oklahoma/Tulsa - reaches 1.2 million TV homes, has over 1.5 million in population, and over 875,000 people attended minor league games last year in the area. A team could survive here, but it would be a struggle.

Portland, Oregon (Eugene) - reaches over 1.3 million TV homes, has a total population over 2.5 million, and over 600,000 people attended minor league games in the area last year. Beautiful city would need an equally beautiful park.

Louisville/Lesxington/Evansville - reaches almost 1.4 million TV homes, total population of over 1.5 million, and over 1 million people attended minor league games in the area last year. Big sports fans in this area, but the team would always have to play on the road on the first Saturday in May. Very underrated sports region.

Buffalo/Rochester - reaches over 1 million TV homes, has over 2.2 million population, and over 1.1 million fans attended minor league games in the area in 2005. Unless Ralph Wilson gets involved, no shot.

Las Vegas - reaches 650,000 TV homes, has population of 1.6 million, and 330,000 fans attended a minor league game in Vegas last year. Tough sell here. Would need a retractable roof stadium, lots of other entertaining things to do in Vegas, legalized gambling stigma, but it is growing like crazy.