With a goal to grow their game globally, MLB, NBA and NFL have taken to scheduling games outside of the United States. The NBA and NFL have been more aggressive in doing so, using the preseason and regular season to showcase their athletes on an international stage.
In 2014, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers opened the season in Sydney, Australia. But other than that three-game series, no regular-season game has ever been played outside the U.S.
The Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins played at Fort Bragg in July, which made for a great event. Last spring, the Tampa Bay Rays went to Cuba to face the Cuban National Team at Estadio Latinoamericano in Havana.
While playing games beyond the U.S. boarders was a goal and desire under former MLB commissioner Bud Selig, an opportunity never came to fruition prior to his tenure coming to an end.
Current commissioner Rob Manfred has a similar goal, and he began the discussions last year to play a regular-season series in London.
Now that the new collective bargaining agreement is in place, the topic of international baseball was discussed.
According to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports, MLB may hold games in London or Mexico as soon as 2018:
Sources: @MLB officials pushed for regular-season games outside of U.S. and Canada, as early as 2018. London and Mexico are top candidates.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 1, 2016
It may be difficult to play a series in the middle of the season in London due to the lack of off-days, so it may have to be to begin a season or right before the All-Star break. Though, there will be a shift to building in more off-days moving forward.
Mexico, on the other hand, will actually be closer to travel than other U.S. cities for some teams, so that would cause less issues as far as travel and scheduling.
Other countries that have a strong baseball following like Netherlands, Italy and Germany could also provide venues for Major League games in the future.
