Could Sacramento Support An MLB Team?

Could Sacramento Support An MLB Team? | The Touchback

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Күн бұрын

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From the Senators to the Solons, Steelheads and Rivercats, California’s capital has a long, complicated history with baseball. The city loves the sport, but this love hasn’t always been reciprocated. That is why Sacramento could easily support an MLB team. The proof is in the history.
During the PCL’s heyday in the 1940s, support and attendance for the Sacramento Solons was solid. It was also the league’s smallest market by some margin. Unfortunately, the league was never granted major league status and interest in the PCL began to wane. The final nail in the coffin came when the Dodgers and Giants moved out west. The Solons stuck around until after the 1960 season when they were sold and moved to Hawaii.
It would be more than a decade before professional baseball would return to the California capital with the Solons 2.0 setting up shop at Hughes Field on the campus of Sacramento City College. They were in town for a good time, not a long time. The franchise set all kinds of home run records but moved two years later.
It would take more than 20 years for baseball to return to California’s capital. Sure, there were always rumblings of a team showing up. They even started building a multipurpose stadium next to Arco Arena that, in hindsight, would have been a disaster.
America’s pastime returned to Sacramento in 1999 with the independent Sacramento Steelheads of the Western Baseball League. They played right next door to Hughes Stadium on the campus of Sac City College but it’s safe to say Union Stadium lacked the charm, and home runs, of its neighbor. More than 3,500 people turned out for opening day but that was enough for most folks.
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@mackledackle 9 ай бұрын

As someone not from California this was a cool dive into some Sacramento baseball lore, but so many other cities have strong baseball histories and support for their minor league teams. You dismissed Salt Lake City and Nashville but both markets draw significantly larger minor league crowds in addition to having long baseball histories of their own (and there are several markets that can claim the same things). I don't think Sacramento should be instantly counted out for MLB expansion, but is there anything else from the local POV that separates Sacramento from other competing cities?

@thetouchback 9 ай бұрын

From a media market size standpoint, I did a video about this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6atdKFupNVjsMU The summary here is that there are only three logical markets for an MLB franchise: keeping a second team in Northern California, Charlotte/North Carolina and Oregon. As far as on the ground, I was actually in Salt Lake City to see Utah football and Real Salt Lake games recently and it's such a minor-league town. It's basically a bigger Reno with inverse morals. Beyond that, youth participation in baseball throughout the Sacramento Valley is strong and MLB could put that in jeopardy without two teams in the region. Utah would support the team because Utah was in the name but Sacramento would be there to support baseball. There is a difference there. As far as Nashville goes, I can't think of a reason they shouldn't get an expansion team over Sacramento assuming both have a stadium plan in place.

@whalesequence 10 ай бұрын

If us kings fans are any indication, attendance would not be an issue at all for a big league team

@frv1995 4 ай бұрын

Winning would be a issue. Top athletes are in no hurry to get to Sacramento. The kings have been almost obsolete in NBA for most of there existence.

@SippyCupAdventures 10 ай бұрын

3rd place in a pie-eating contest at the Nut Tree? Slacker. 😆This was fascinating! Love the nostalgia you chronicled. I had no idea that there was baseball at Hughes Stadium? Were they affiliated with the Brewers? That was Gorman Thomas. I thought I saw the Brewers logo on the outfield wall. It would be a dream if MLB came to Sacramento, well, that's after the A's saga is finished. I am pretty sour with MLB, currently.

@thetouchback 9 ай бұрын

Good spot. That is indeed Gorman Thomas and the Solons 2.0 were a Brewers affiliate. He led the PCL in strikeouts and hit 51 homers in a very on-brand season for him.

@SippyCupAdventures 9 ай бұрын

@@thetouchback Nice. Yeah, those Harvey Wallbangers of Thomas, Oglive, Cooper, Simmons, Yount, Molitor had me rooting for them. Good lord!

@raw-b6658 10 ай бұрын

Hey! Welcome to my city! We love the Kings

@user-mw5vd2bi6w 10 ай бұрын

I remember going to Solons games in the 70s. Great memories of games with my Dad and my little league team. I miss the old Nut Tree too.

@sawyertuide7636 9 ай бұрын

I think Sacramento would be great for the MLB. However, being a NorCal team that is not in San Fran, to some up top (Manfred, Fisher) think they’d be the spiritual successor to Oakland as a market. I think the MLB wants the Giants to not just have the Bay but all of NorCal, and that means I don’t think they expand to Sacramento.

@xaviersaavedra7442 8 ай бұрын

Sacramento is still the heart of the valley. They could pull a cardinals or any Minnesota team and name it after the state. Not to mention nor cal has a pop of 22 mil. So having two teams make sense.

@99somerville 3 күн бұрын

Who doesn’t like watching or playing in 110 degree temps?

@See5harp 6 күн бұрын

Sacramento is a medium/small market. It might be a large "TV market". That is perhaps more important in today's deals but why Sacramento over Oklahoma City. I feel like Sacramento is forever going to be a symbol of suburban spawl in Nor Cal much like Orange County and San Bernardino is in So Cal. A whole lot of strip malls and not many high paying jobs.

@jeremyhelquist 6 ай бұрын

I live in the Sacramento area and don’t think it would be supported. Most support Bay Area teams (A’s drama aside) and I have never heard much interest in expansion. Baseball in Sacramento isn’t talked about.

@GuyIn801 6 ай бұрын

Sacramento has too much California to dig out of. The city lives in the shadows of the state. Way too much competition in sports for Sacramento to emerge as a MLB destination unless it becomes home to another California franchise. It's in the same wheelhouse as Orlando in FL.

@Dweller415 7 ай бұрын

Sacramento has the population; decent paychecks; a top 20 media market but lacks Fortune 500 HQ. So no, we can’t support MLB. Also it’s stupid how saturated Las Vegas. Vegas is too small to support all the teams.