What MLB Could Look Like After Expansion: Eight Divisions, New Rivalries?!

The Mets swapping the Braves for the Yankees as divisional foes? Goodbye to the Dodgers vs. Giants rivalry as we know it? 

Geographic realignment in MLB is more likely than you think. Or, more likely than previously thought, after commissioner Rob Manfred surprisingly discussed the subject on Sunday.

With expansion expected before the end of this decade, there could be a major shuffling to help address concerns over travel schedules. Candidates include Nashville, Salt Lake City, or an MLB return to Montreal. There's also Mexico City (elevation at 7,349 feet!) to rival the Rockies' Coors Field as the park that pitchers would most hate to see on the schedule. 

But with Manfred's emphasis on geography, two cities – Charlotte and Portland – would make the most sense. And with hypothetical franchises in the Queen City and the Rose City, we can ask: What would a realigned MLB look like? We’ve got an idea.

Eight divisions with four teams each, which is a huge shift from today's six divisions with five teams. The American League gets condensed (confined to the heavily populated East Coast out to the Great Lakes region), while the National League stretches out for far more square mileage. 

Okay with that? Well, let’s talk about the why of each division.

New York Yankees
New York Mets
Boston Red Sox
Philadelphia Phillies

A division that places together four of the largest, loudest cities in the region — don’t worry, that’s a compliment. This division also has maybe the strongest "we’re so back/it’s so over" energy of them all, too, given how these fan bases tend to engage with their teams’ highs and lows. Keeping the Red Sox and Yankees together was paramount, but this setup also has the bonus of letting the Mets and Yankees