MLB Teams That Should Have Never Relocated

Relocating an MLB team is a gamble. Sometimes, it works out (hello, Los Angeles Dodgers), but other times, it leaves a trail of bitter fans, lost history, and a lingering sense of what could have been.

Over the years, some teams have left cities where they were beloved, only to land in a new home that doesn’t quite feel right. Here are MLB teams that should have never relocated, ranked from mildly regrettable to what were they thinking?

9. Milwaukee Braves → Atlanta Braves (1966)

The Braves moving to Atlanta worked, but it still stings for Milwaukee. This wasn’t a struggling franchise—the Braves had won a World Series in 1957 and had baseball’s biggest star, Hank Aaron. Yet, ownership saw dollar signs in the South and left town. Milwaukee eventually got the Brewers, but they’ve never had the kind of success the Braves had before skipping town.

8. Washington Senators → Texas Rangers (1972)

The Senators were bad—no one denies that. But moving them to Texas didn’t exactly fix things right away (it took the Rangers 50 years to win a World Series). Washington, meanwhile, was left without baseball until 2005, and when the Nationals finally won it all in 2019, it felt like redemption. Maybe the Senators just needed more time.

7. St. Louis Browns → Baltimore Orioles (1954)

OK, technically this worked out, since Baltimore has fully embraced the Orioles. But St. Louis was once a two-team town, and the Browns had a deep (if not very successful) history. Plus, they had some wild moments, like letting a one-armed man bat in a game. The Browns might have been baseball’s lovable losers, but St. Louis fans would have absolutely supported them if they ever turned things around.

6. Brooklyn Dodgers → Los Angeles Dodgers (1958)

National Baseball Hall of Fame: Brooklyn Dodgers — Flickr

Yes, the move to LA turned the Dodgers into a global powerhouse. But Brooklyn was baseball’s heartbeat. The team had one of the most loyal fan bases in history, Jackie Robinson changed the game there, and Ebbets Field had vibes. Moving West made financial sense, but something special was lost when Brooklyn lost its Dodgers.

5. Houston Colt .45s → Houston Astros (1965 Name Change, Dome Life Begins)

This one is a bit different because the team didn’t relocate in the traditional sense—they just changed their name and identity completely. The Houston Colt .45s had one of the coolest branding concepts in baseball history. A team named after the famous revolver, playing in a rough-and-tumble Texas city? Perfect. But then, they moved into the Astrodome and rebranded as the Astros, trading a legendary name for a futuristic gimmick. Imagine the merch sales today if they were still the Colt .45s. A tragic loss for baseball aesthetics.

4. Montreal Expos → Washington Nationals (2005)

The Expos had one of the most passionate fan bases in baseball—until ownership and MLB completely abandoned them. Sure, the team struggled financially, but that was largely due to MLB actively undermining them (see: canceling their best chance at a World Series in 1994, forcing them to play half their games in Puerto Rico). The Nationals won a title in 2019, but imagine if that happened in Montreal? The city deserved a second chance.

3. New York Giants → San Francisco Giants (1958)

Like the Dodgers, the Giants’ move to California made financial sense. But New York loved the Giants, and losing them and the Dodgers in the same year left a massive hole in the city’s baseball culture. Willie Mays could have spent his entire career thrilling New Yorkers at the Polo Grounds instead of Candlestick Park. At least the Mets came along to give some hope, but still—New York baseball was never the same.

2. Seattle Pilots → Milwaukee Brewers (1970)

Seattle had a team for one year. One! The Pilots barely had a chance to settle in before MLB let them move to Milwaukee, robbing the city of baseball until the Mariners arrived in 1977. While Milwaukee fans have embraced the Brewers, the whole thing was rushed and weird. Seattle fans deserved better than a one-season trial run.

1. Kansas City Athletics → Oakland A’s (1968)

Kansas City loved the A’s, but ownership (looking at you, Charlie Finley) couldn’t stop trying to move them elsewhere. When they finally bolted for Oakland, KC had to scramble to get an expansion team (the Royals), but the A’s had already built a loyal fan base. And now they’re doing it again, proving that no matter the city, the problem is always the people in charge.