Blue Jays Welcome Vancouver's MLB Bid, But It's Not That Simple

While the Toronto Blue Jays have ruled Canada unopposed for two decades, they may soon have to share it.

Toronto Blue Jays President and CEO Mark Shapiro | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

While there has been no formal announcement from Major League Baseball that the league will be expanding, the expectation is that before Commissioner Rob Manfred's term is up in January 2029, there will be two new expansion cities chosen for future homes of MLB.

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim is the booster behind the project, and there is already a site picked out for the project — False Creek, a 20-acre site on the water. They're also looking to “identify and evaluate" potential owners who would then bid for the right to seek an expansion franchise in Vancouver.

There are plenty of questions that remain with this proposal, but with the timeline for MLB still undefined, that shouldn't cause too much worry just yet. Vancouver has been making headlines in recent weeks, and the Toronto Blue Jays President Mark Shapiro is on board.

Shapiro told Sportsnet this week, "We are supportive of any effort to grow baseball in Canada, and that would include the opportunity to bring MLB to Vancouver."

Of course, Shapiro has every incentive to say this regardless of what his and the Blue Jays' true feelings on expansion in Canada really are. While Vancouver is across the country from Toronto, the Jays are still seen as "Canada's Team," and this would eat into that brand a little bit.

Shapiro being supportive of a potential expansion bid is a must, because he would be at risk of displeasing other Canadians if he said anything negative about Canada getting a second franchise.

Opposition for Vancouver expansion?

Jul 21, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; General view of T-Mobile Park during the ninth inning of a game between the Milwaukee Brewers and Seattle Mariners. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The biggest obstacle for the Vancouver bid is going to be funding, as it will be for every expansion bid. Not only will these groups have to win the bid at expansion — which is expected to be at least $2 billion and could climb as high as $3 billion — but once that piece is secured, they'll also have to build a new ballpark, which can run another $2 billion or so.

While the Blue Jays may not like there to be another team in Vancouver, they're not likely to be the loudest opponent — if they hold any opposition at all. Vancouver could be their best-case scenario for a Canadian expansion team.

Instead, the opposition would fall to the Seattle Mariners, who currently sit unopposed in the Pacific Northwest. Their closest competition is currently in Sacramento, with the A's interim home ballpark located 753 miles (1,211 km) from Seattle. When the A's leave for Las Vegas, the San Francisco Giants at 808 miles (1,300 km) away will become Seattle's closest competitor.

Vancouver is just 143 miles (230 km) from Seattle, which would eat directly into their current territory. While fans in Vancouver may not travel across Canada to Toronto for a Jays game routinely, they could easily make it to Seattle and back in one day. While there may be more Jays fans than Mariners fans in Vancouver currently, where they spend their money may not be entirely on Jays games.

Opportunity for Blue Jays?

Jul 1, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; A general view of the interior of Rogers Centre during the Canadian national anthem before a game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images | Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

While allowing another team into your market is never necessarily ideal, there would be a couple of positives that could come along with an expansion team in Vancouver from the perspective of the Blue Jays.

On the one hand, it's not Montreal, which has to be a positive purely from a financial standpoint for the Blue Jays. The Expos were 338 miles (545 km) away in Montreal, while this new team would be 2,710 miles (4,362 km) away. If Canada were to get a second team, Vancouver could actually be the spot the Blue Jays are pulling for.

The other reason is that it would create a huge rivalry for national pride. That means more merchandise to sell, higher ticket prices, and more money for these two teams during those series. Add those to their matchups with the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, and that's a good slate of games that are real needle movers financially.

The Blue Jays have spent the past two decades as Canada's Team by default after the Expos left Montreal. A Vancouver franchise would give them a chance to earn that title.