Sacramento group unveils bid for MLB expansion franchise

Sacramento is making its pitch for an expansion franchise in Major League Baseball.

Regional leaders near California's capital city formally unveiled a bid on Thursday. The group tossed out "The Sacramento Pitch" in a release from the Greater Sacramento Economic Council that boasted about a "fully entitled 50-acre stadium site" and nearly $2 billion in public and private funds, as well as land.

"When MLB moves forward on expansion, Sacramento will be impossible to ignore," said Mark Friedman, founder and chairman of Fulcrum Property and board chair of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council.

"We have the market, the site, the capital, and the community. Sacramento is ready to compete -- and Sacramento is ready to win," Friedman said.

Sacramento is the No. 20 media market in the United States. Of the markets ahead of it, only one -- Orlando-Daytona Beach -- does not have an MLB team.

The Athletics are playing their home games for a second straight season in West Sacramento, Calif. Their temporary home is Sutter Health Park, a minor-league stadium that effectively holds the fort until the A's state-of-the-art ballpark in Las Vegas is completed in 2028.

"This is a defining moment for West Sacramento, and we're ready," West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero said in a news release. "Major League Baseball is already seeing firsthand the passion, energy, and civic pride that exists here. This region offers a practical and achievable path for long-term MLB success, and we have the financial capacity, community support, and clear vision needed to bring Major League Baseball permanently to West Sacramento. We're built for this. We're ready. Bring it on."

Preliminary plans call for a stadium to be constructed near, or at, the site of Sutter Health Park.

In addition to politicians, "The Sacramento Pitch" features former San Francisco Giants manager Dusty Baker and former MLB player and Sacramento native Derrek Lee.

"I have always believed Sacramento is a major league city. Throughout my career, I've traveled across the country, and there's something different about the people here. This community truly loves baseball," Baker said in a news release. "For more than a century, this region has built a proud baseball legacy and developed generations of Major League Baseball players. I could not be more excited for the prospect of bringing a permanent MLB team here."

The Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay (then-Devil) Rays were MLB's last expansion teams. They debuted in 1998.

Commissioner Rob Manfred has said he would like to have two expansion cities chosen by 2029, one in the West and one in the East.

--Field Level Media