Yankees and Major League Baseball arrive at a crossroads

Okay, now back to the money

And expansion/realignment is coming soon; expect that to be one of the most significant topics of the season. The players are tired of all the travel, as multimillionaires probably have some right to be.

Plus, the league is flush with cash. It’s one of the reasons the players demanded the luxury tax limit be raised.

Right now, when the Mariners travel to play an away game, their shortest distance is over 800 miles, which applies to the teams that have to fly in to play a quick series with them. Boston and New York are only two hundred miles apart.

And that says nothing about the time zones. For you travelers, you know that time in the air and number of times zones are the two biggest problems.

The solution is a win-win. MLB will look to add a team to Portland, Oregon and either Vancouver, BC, Vegas or Mexico City. For those who don’t know the Northwest, the Portland/Vancouver option would put three teams in driving distance from each other.

These additional teams would also bring realignment. This article goes into great depth, but the salient points are that there will be 32 teams, a possibly reduced season, and expanded playoffs. And it will lead to a lot less travel for the Yankees, and all the other teams.

That will be offset for some teams by the addition of international games, a la the NFL, but still, the aggregate should be beneficial to the players. And the game played on the field.