Where Might Rockies End up in MLB Pursues Geographic Realignment?

The Colorado Rockies have always been in the National League West division. Could that change if MLB decides to realign?

Aug 1, 2025; Chicago, IL, USA; Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announces Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs will host the 2027 All Star game at Wrigley Field. / David Banks-Imagn Images

Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred told ESPN on Sunday during MLB’s Little League World Series game that he would like to visit geographic realignment.

Manfred is pairing the issue with expansion, something he hopes to pursue in the next few years. He appears to have his eye on adding two new teams, which would bring MLB to 32 teams. Doing so would bring two new markets to the game, but it would also unbalance the divisions, something MLB was able to do away with more than a decade ago.

He wants realignment done by the time his term as commissioner ends in 2029. He sees it as a chance to address some of the significant geographic inequities that still exist in the game. He highlighted player travel as a chief concern.

“I think we could save a lot of wear and tear on our players in terms of travel,” Manfred said in comments transcribed by multiple outlets, also building in geography and the postseason into his argument to realign.

But what could that look like? Well, a couple of years ago, Jim Bowden at The Athletic (subscription required) attacked that problem with a plan that would do what Manfred is seeking — and markedly change the Rockies’ division.

A New Rockies Division?

Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Bowden chose to realign based entirely on geography and not the traditional American and National Leagues that have ruled the game for more than 100 years. In fact, he even changed the league names to the eastern conference and the western conference, making it sound more like the NBA and NHL than baseball.

In the proposed Pacific Coast Division, the Rockies would be in the same division with the Athletics — who are preparing to move to Las Vegas — along with the Seattle Mariners and the San Francisco Giants. The Giants would be the only team that are currently in the Rockies’ division.

The remaining three teams in the current NL West — the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Diego Padres — would remain there, along with the AL’s Los Angeles Dodgers.

Rockies Divisions Through the Years

Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Rockies have been in the NL West since their expansion season in 1993. But, thanks to MLB’s former divisions, the NL West looked much different than it does now. In fact, only three of the other six teams in the seven-team division played in the Pacific time zone.

The Rockies joined a division that had been consistent since the last 1960s and included the Atlanta Braves, the Cincinnati Reds and the Houston Astros, the first two of which were in the eastern time zone, with the Astros in the central time zone.

In 1994, the Braves, Reds and Astros moved to different divisions, leaving the NL West with four teams. In 1998, the National League added the Arizona Diamondbacks, who joined the West. The Rockies and the Diamondbacks, along with the Dodgers, the Padres and the Giants, are currently in the NL West.

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