A step backwards for Baseball....

[cc_penguin]

According to <a href="http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20011106/sp/mlb_owners_dc_4.html" target="_blank">here</a> two teams will be cut from the Major league, boy times are tuff eh?

[MacGyver]

I don't know about the Twins, but the Montreal Expos were doomed anyway. They averaged something like 5000 fans per game last season.

[crazyman]

well either way,thats a crazy and terrible sign of the times.

[Fierce]

It was only a matter of time before this would happen, especially to Montreal. For the last few yrs their attendace #'s have been diminishing, its sad. Maybe if $$ was more evenly distributed among the teams baseball would become more interesting with new teams making it to the series every year instead of the same handfull that have made it the past 10 yrs..

[ßracius]

Texas Rangers. PLEASE! What an embarassment to Texas and Baseball!

[Commander Klarg]

Being a MN native, I am not very pleased to see this transpiring. Now, the last thing one could accuse me of being is a baseball fan, but it still sticks in my craw. Why, do you ask?

The stadium issue, as in "the Metrodome isn't good enough, build us a new one." Most Minnesotans are not willing to pony up any cash to finance the building of one. Yes, the Metrozit isn't the best facility, but it's not THAT old. And now MLB is basically using extortion tactics to get the new stadium, or the Twins will be no more. That pisses me off.

[Spork]

Yeah, the whole stadium thing started in Minnesota when Saint Paul built the Xcel Energy Center. Then Minneapolis wanted money to facelift the Target Center. Afterwards the Twins wanted around $300 million for the new stadium. Then the Vikings wanted around $600 million for their new stadium. Sh!t, where the hell is all this money popping up from. I sure the hell don't want to pay for it out of my taxes.

I agree, the Metrodome sucks and neither team is all that great to deserve a new stadium. Who knows, in a couple days the Twins could be gone and then the Vikings will get their stadium for sure.

[Stalemate]

[quote]Originally posted by MacGyver:
<strong>I don't know about the Twins, but the Montreal Expos were doomed anyway. They averaged something like 5000 fans per game last season.</strong><hr></blockquote>

There were even events hosted this summer with less than 2000 attending.

One game even proposed free hotdogs during the match to all kids who would show up with a parent, and tickets were selling for 5$ CAN

And to think that late 2000, early 2001 almost saw the building of a new stadium for these goofs!

[KINGofBLEH]

I have thought there were too many teams for some time now. I think they should look to eliminate more than 2. There are too many small market teams located near large markets that are suffering:

1. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: I mean, come on. What were they thinking?? TB is a MINOR LEAGUE baseball town.
2. Montreal Expos: for obvious reasons.
3. Minnesota Twins: the former Washington Senators were just looking for a town with a stadium. The honeymoon's over.
4. San Diego Padres: a good club which continues to absorb financial losses every year.
5. Kansas City Royals: another team that can no longer afford marquis player salaries.

There are others in my opinion. The bottom line is that the league is look large for the minor league systems that support it. The pitching talent is extremely diluted, which is why you are seeing 73 home run seasons and guys with stats that would have won the triple crown 15 years ago.

If they reduce the number of teams, then the remaining teams will be able to continue paying the higher salaries of today without taking huge financial losses.