Minor league double-switch?

Professional baseball might be returning to the nation's capital in 2013, and it could very well be the Toronto Blue Jays double-A affiliate.

The Ottawa Citizen is reporting Thursday that Eastern League commissioner Joe McEacharn has given permission to Massachusetts-based brokerage firm Beacon Sports to explore Ottawa for the relocation of the Binghamton Mets, the current double-A affiliate of the New York Mets.

Toronto's current double-A team is the New Hampshire Fisher-Cats, the resigning league Eastern League champions.

According to the report, Ottawa would become the new home of the Binghamton franchise following a swap of affiliations between the Blue Jays and Mets at the end of 2012, leaving New York's double-A team in New Hampshire.

But there is still much work to be done.

Beacon Sports managing director Richard Billings was in Ottawa Wednesday to meet with city councilors and in early December the group is expected to return and present the city with a proposal for a long-term lease on city-owned Ottawa Stadium.

City staff are scheduled to report to council in January with the results of the bidding process as well as the money that will be needed to get the stadium ready for baseball by 2013.

It was also reported that Beacon Sports would seek local investors to own a portion of the team.

According to a city staff report, Ottawa's stadium will need about $3.9 million in improvements over the next 10 years, including up to $2.5 million for various upgrades to bring the stadium up to standards suitable for a minor-league team affiliated with a major-league club.