1977 Major League Baseball expansion

Addition of the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays November 2019 The 1977 Major League Baseball expansion resulted in the establishment of expansion franchises in Seattle and Toronto in the American League of Major League Baseball. The Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays began play in the 1977 season, becoming the 25th and 26th teams in Major League Baseball. Seattle and Toronto were included in a list of potential expansion cities in a survey conducted by the American League in 1960.Sarasota Herald-Tribune 1960 The others were Atlanta, Buffalo, Dallas–Fort Worth, Denver, Oakland, and San Diego (all of which received MLB franchises eventually through expansion or relocation except Buffalo, which has a AAA team in the Blue Jays system.)Sarasota Herald-Tribune 1960 Seattle History of the Seattle Mariners In the 1969 Major League Baseball expansion (which had been originally planned to take place in 1971, but the date was moved up two years when Senator Stuart Symington of Missouri demanded that a new team be placed in Kansas City at the earliest possible convenience after the Kansas City Athletics relocated to Oakland), Kansas City, Montreal, San Diego, and Seattle were each granted franchises; the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Pilots were added to the American League, while the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals) and San Diego Padres joined the National League. The Seattle Pilots only played one season, during which they faced financial difficulties stemming from a complete lack of television coverage, a poorly performing team, a stadium with problems, and the highest ticket and concession prices in the league.Hogan 2007 128 Owners of other American League teams wanted Dewey Soriano and William R. Daley to sell the team to a Seattle owner who would improve the team and address issues at Sick's Stadium, particularly uncovered seats with bad views.Hogan 2007 128 After several attempts to sell the team to a Seattle owner failed, on April 1, 1970, judge Sidney Volinn declared the team officially bankrupt; it was sold to Milwaukee car dealer (and future MLB commissioner) Bud Selig,Schabowski Rick 2011 April 7, 1970: Milwaukee Brewers make their debut at County Stadium https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/april-7-1970-milwaukee-brewers-make-their-debut-at-county-stadium/ 2023-03-24 Society of American Baseball Research who moved the team to there and renamed it the Milwaukee Brewers, who began play a week later on April 7.Muder, Craig Bud Selig's work as commissioner leads him to Cooperstown's doorstep Society of American Baseball Research 2011 https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/news/selig-bud March 24, 2023Stone 2006 Selig had negotiated a deal for the purchase with Soriano during Game 1 of the 1969 World Series.Stone 2006 As a result of the relocation of the Seattle Pilots to Milwaukee, in 1970 the city of Seattle, King County and the state of Washington sued the American League for breach of contract.Cour 1999 C16 The $32.5 million lawsuitRiess 2006 802 proceeded until 1976, when at trial the American League offered the city a franchise in exchange for the city, county, and state to drop the suit.Cour 1999 C16 On November 2, 1972, King County had broken ground on the Kingdome,MacIntosh 2000 which would come to be used by the Seattle Mariners for baseball and by the Seahawks for football. On January 15, 1976, the expansion franchise was approved, becoming the 13th franchise in the American League. It was owned by Lester Smith and Danny Kaye,Riess 2006 802 who paid an expansion fee of 6.5 USD million.Jozsa 2006 58 Owing to the history surrounding the franchise, sportswriter Emmett Watson of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer joked that the team should be named the Seattle Litigants.Riess 2006 802 Toronto History of the Toronto Blue Jays Toronto had a long history of interest in baseball. Its first professional baseball team was established in 1885, and in 1886 Sunlight Park was built to host its games. In 1897, Hanlan's Point Stadium was built at the Toronto Islands for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the International League, and on September 5, 1914 it was the site of baseball legend Babe Ruth's first professional home run and only minor league home run.Creamer 2005 98 In 1926, Maple Leaf Stadium was built for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The team was successful, sometimes drawing more fans than established Major League Baseball teams.Riess 2006 844 The team was owned by Jack Kent Cooke, who in the mid-1950s sought municipal financing of a major league baseball park on the grounds of the Canadian National Exhibition.Riess 2006 844 He was also involved in the failed attempt to establish the Continental League as a third league in Major League Baseball in the early 1960s.Riess 2006 844 Maple Leaf Stadium was demolished in 1968 after the Toronto Maple Leafs were sold to Walter Dilbeck and moved to Louisville, Kentucky. (The team has since relocated twice, and is now the Worcester Red Sox.) In the early 1970s, Toronto City Council alderman Paul Godfrey proposed a plan for a publicly financed domed stadium in the city, but it was opposed by taxpayers and amateur sports groups.Riess 2006 844 Undeterred, he proposed renovation of Exhibition Stadium to support baseball. The stadium was renovated in anticipation of the city being awarded a Major League Baseball team, costing 15 million.Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 2011 Last audio clip in the post, from CBC Radio in 1977 Half of the funds were provided by the municipal government, and the other half from an interest-free loan from the provincial Government of Ontario.Riess 2006 844 Its seating capacity was increased to 40,000.St. Petersburg Times 1976 There had been strong interest from several groups and individuals to own a Major League Baseball team in the city. The most prominent was Labatt Brewing Company, who wanted to use ownership of a sports team as a means to establish a visible presence in the Toronto market.Riess 2006 845 On January 9, 1976, the National Exhibition Company, owners of the San Francisco Giants, established an agreement in principle to sell the franchise to a consortium owned by Labatt Brewing Company, Vulcan Assets, and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce for 13,250,000 (CA 13500000 1976 eq.St. Petersburg Times 1976 The Giants had failed to repay a 500,000 USD loan from Major League Baseball, and had experienced declining revenues since the relocation of the Kansas City Athletics to Oakland in 1968.St. Petersburg Times 1976 Of the sale price, 5,250,000 USD was to be placed in escrow to "meet certain possible obligations with respect to the transaction", especially the lease of Candlestick Park, which would expire in 1994.St. Petersburg Times 1976 The new owners of the Giants, led by Don McDougall, would move the team to Toronto pending approval from the other eleven National League teams, which would be sought on January 14 at the Winter Meetings of General managers in Phoenix. The team would be known as the Toronto GiantsSt. Petersburg Times 1976 and would begin play during the 1976 Major League Baseball season. The deal was scuttled by a Superior Court of California, which issued an injunction blocking the sale on February 11, 1976; the injunction was requested by the city of San Francisco on January 10.Sakamoto 1976 The National Exhibition Company eventually accepted a purchase proposal from Bob Lurie in a deal brokered by George Moscone, the Mayor of San Francisco; Lurie elected to keep the team in San Francisco.Sakamoto 1976 This was the third scuttled attempt by Labatt to bring an MLB team to Toronto, after failures to acquire the Baltimore Orioles and the Cleveland Indians.Davidi 2016 9 Soon after, Godfrey received a phone call from Kansas City Royals owner Ewing Kauffman informing him that he supported a Toronto franchise for the American League.Davidi 2016 10 During an owners meeting held on March 20, 1976, the American League franchises voted 11-1 to expand the league with a Toronto franchise, to which National League owners resolved to consider a Toronto franchise to begin play in the 1977 season.Davidi 2016 10 Bowie Kuhn, at the time the Commissioner of Baseball, planned for the National League to expand with new franchises in Toronto and Washington, D.C., and for the American League to add a new franchise in New Orleans in addition to the already-awarded Seattle franchise.Davidi 2016 10Davidi 2016 12 On March 29, National League owners met and voted in favour of the expansion plans, but they were rejected because the vote was not unanimous, with dissenting votes from the owners of the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies.Davidi 2016 12 A subsequent vote on April 26 ended this plan with a 7–5 result in favour of the proposal, again failing to achieve unanimity.Davidi 2016 12 Two groups bid for the rights to franchise ownership in the city,Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 2011 Last audio clip in the post, from CBC Radio in 1977 which presented bids during an American League owner's meeting on March 26, 1976.Davidi 2016 11 Ultimately, an ownership group named Metro Baseball Ltd. consisting of Labatt Brewing Company, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and Imperial Trust won the bid for a franchise fee of 7 million.Jozsa 2006 58Sgambati 1976Toronto Blue Jays: Franchise TimelineRiess 2006 845 The other bid was made by Atlantic Packaging.Sgambati 1976 The winning bid was represented by legal counsel Herb Solway and Gord Kirke. Kirke prepared the original documents which led to the foundation of the team in 1976.https://www.canadianlawyermag.com/article/the-champs-champion-8/ The champs' champion Livesey Bruce January 25, 2006 Canadian Lawyer Magazine May 2, 2019 After the city was awarded the franchise, U.S. President Gerald Ford attempted to pressure Major League Baseball to instead award the franchise to Washington, D.C., which he claimed should have a team before Toronto. Both the American League and National League dismissed his request.Howden 1976 In 1974, the Toronto City Council approved a further 2.8 million for renovations to Exhibition Stadium, retrofitting the stadium for baseball and would be ready in time for the 1977 season.Riess 2006 845 Paul Beeston was hired as the team's first employee on May 10, 1976, and Peter Bavasi was hired as the team's first president and general manager on June 18, 1976.Riess 2006 845Davidi 2016 12 Expansion draft 1976 Major League Baseball expansion draft In order to stock the roster of each team, a draft was held on November 5, 1976 in which each of the extant teams would make available to the expansion franchises some of the players on their major league and minor league rosters. Each team was allowed to protect fifteen players on the major league roster, and an additional three players after each of the first and second round of the draft.Holtzman 1997 The Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays each selected 30 players in the draft.Holtzman 1997 See also 1961 Major League Baseball expansion 1962 Major League Baseball expansion 1969 Major League Baseball expansion 1993 Major League Baseball expansion 1998 Major League Baseball expansion References 3 Further reading Major League Baseball Expansions and Relocations: A History, 1876–2008 Jozsa Frank P. McFarland & Company 2010 9780786457236 Columbia Magazine http://www.wshs.org/wshs/columbia/articles/0200-a2.htm Play Ball! Schaefer Kurt Washington State Historical Society Summer 2000 14 2 March 12, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20080422003453/http://www.wshs.org/wshs/columbia/articles/0200-a2.htm April 22, 2008 Schaefer http://www.cbc.ca/75/2011/08/blue-jays-fever-sweeps-toronto.html Blue Jays fever sweeps Toronto Canadian Broadcasting Corporation August 18, 2011 February 27, 2013 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 2011 Good riddance Cour Jim Austin American-Statesman June 27, 1999 Babe: The Legend Comes to Life Creamer Robert W. Robert Creamer 2005 1974 Fireside sports classics Simon & Schuster 0-671-76070-X registration https://archive.org/details/babelegendcomest00crea_0 The Big 50: The men and moments that made the Toronto Blue Jays Davidi Shi Triumph Books 2016 978-1-62937-208-2 The 1969 Seattle Pilots: Major League Baseball's One-Year Team Hogan Kenneth McFarland 2007 9780786427864 https://www.chicagotribune.com/1997/11/13/expansion-draft-no-joke-anymore/ Expansion Draft No Joke Anymore On Baseball Holtzman Jerome Chicago Tribune November 13, 1997 February 27, 2013 http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/sports/baseball/major-league-baseball-comes-to-canada/will-toronto-ever-get-a-franchise.html Will Toronto ever get a baseball franchise? Howden Suzanne CBC News April 4, 1976 February 27, 2013 Big Sports, Big Business: A Century of League Expansions, Mergers, and Reorganizations Jozsa Frank P. Greenwood Publishing Group 2006 0275991342 http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=2164 Kingdome: The Controversial Birth of a Seattle Icon (1959–1976) MacIntosh Heather HistoryLink March 1, 2000 March 12, 2013 Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Clubs Riess Steven A. Greenwood Publishing Group 2006 0313329915 Giants will stay in San Francisco Sakamoto Gordon United Press International The Bryan Times February 12, 1976 http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/sports/baseball/major-league-baseball-comes-to-canada/toronto-joins-the-big-leagues.html Toronto joins baseball's big leagues Sgambati Fred CBC News May 1, 1976 February 27, 2013 http://seattletimes.com/html/mariners/2003114503_pilots09.html Endearing & enduring: The 1969 Seattle Pilots Stone Larry The Seattle Times July 9, 2006 March 12, 2013 Giants moving: Toronto Associated Press St. Petersburg Times January 9, 1976 St. Petersburg Times 1976 Boston move in 1953 key to expansion United Press International Sarasota Herald-Tribune October 31, 1960 Sarasota Herald-Tribune 1960 http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/tor/history/timeline1.jsp https://web.archive.org/web/20071015063835/http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/tor/history/timeline1.jsp dead October 15, 2007 1976–1979 Franchise Timeline Toronto Blue Jays February 27, 2013 Toronto Blue Jays: Franchise Timeline Expansion Category:1977 in Canadian sports Category:1977 in sports in Washington (state) 1977 Category:History of the Seattle Mariners Category:History of the Toronto Blue Jays Category:1977 in sports in Ontario