Montreal is on the radar of baseball’s new commissioner as a potential destination for a big league team, but Rob Manfred says the city first needs ‘a very firm plan’ for how to build and finance an MLB-calibre stadium.
While Manfred wouldn’t expect a facility in Montreal before there are assurances of a team, he would still want to see progress. Bottom line, he’s encouraged by the support Montreal has shown.
“I think it’s good for baseball to have cities that want to have a major league team,” Manfred told Jeff Blair on Sportsnet 590 The FAN Tuesday.
The Toronto Blue Jays and New York Mets played two exhibition games in Montreal before the 2014 season, averaging nearly 50,000 fans per game. The two-game series was widely considered a success, prompting the Blue Jays and Cincinnati Reds to schedule a pair of spring games in Montreal this Friday and Saturday.
Manfred’s predecessor, Bud Selig, said the 2014 exhibition games encouraged MLB that Montreal could once again be a viable big league city.
“They could be an excellent candidate in the future, no question about it,” Selig told reporters at the 2014 All-Star Game. “That was very impressive, very impressive.”
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Though the Canadian dollar continues to struggle, MLB has not started working with the Blue Jays on potential solutions.
“We have not had conversations with the Blue Jays about the currency situation,” Manfred said. While the commissioner would be open to discussing the possibility, he noted that “frankly, that has not become an issue so far.”
As for Blue Jays president Paul Beeston, Manfred said “we’re friends and we’ll remain friends.” Beeston opposed Manfred’s ascent to commissioner, but both have publicly said that they’re on good terms nonetheless.