Could Utah be home to another sports team soon?

Presently, the Utah Jazz are the only of the “big four” teams in the Beehive State. Yes, the MLS and minor league hockey both have teams in the state, but the Jazz are the only A-list team in the state. Utah University and Bringham Young University are both collegiate powerhouses, but neither of them are anywhere near a professional-level team.

Jazz owner Ryan Smith sold a majority stake of the team with the intent of bringing another team to Salt Lake, but what league would add a team? The MLB already has 32 teams, and it looks like the Oakland A’s could be on the move if a new stadium is not built in California.

Utah Jazz: Could they eventually share the city?

The NHL would make sense in Utah, given the climate of the northern part of the state, but they just added teams in Las Vegas and Seattle. The NFL could be a viable candidate, but I suspect they would prefer to plant a team in San Antonio, Toronto, or back in St. Louis.

Obviously, most Jazz fans would love a second sports team to cheer for. In a recent survey, over half of you said you would think an MLB team would do the best in Utah.

It makes sense. The Utes and Cougars excel at football, and baseball is the biggest sport left out. Plus, let’s face it. Residents of Utah tend to be traditionalists, and baseball is America’s pastime. Granted, SLC would be one of the smaller markets, but with teams like Baltimore, Tampa, Cleveland, Minnesota, St. Louis, Milwaukee, and San Diego all playing above .500, there’s no reason another small market team couldn’t crack through.

What would the team look like? Where would they play? What would their mascot be? That would all be up to ownership and residents of Utah, but I think Salt Lake should heavily be considered for an expansion team.