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Baltimore Orioles: What To Make Of Orioles Relocation Rumors

ByAaron Gershon|
BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 29: Eutaw Street is seen empty as the Baltimore Orioles play the Chicago White Sox at an empty Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 29, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. Due to unrest in relation to the arrest and death of Freddie Gray, the two teams played in a stadium closed to the public. Gray, 25, was arrested for possessing a switch blade knife April 12 outside the Gilmor Houses housing project on Baltimore's west side. According to his attorney, Gray died a week later in the hospital from a severe spinal cord injury he received while in police custody. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 29: Eutaw Street is seen empty as the Baltimore Orioles play the Chicago White Sox at an empty Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 29, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. Due to unrest in relation to the arrest and death of Freddie Gray, the two teams played in a stadium closed to the public. Gray, 25, was arrested for possessing a switch blade knife April 12 outside the Gilmor Houses housing project on Baltimore's west side. According to his attorney, Gray died a week later in the hospital from a severe spinal cord injury he received while in police custody. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Rumors have swirled that the Baltimore Orioles could potentially move to Nashville. Is there real reason to worry the Charm City could lose it’s baseball team?

The Baltimore Orioles are one of baseball’s most historic franchises. A member of the MLB since 1954, the Orioles have won three world series championships, nine division titles and had some of the games best players such as Cal Ripken Jr. and Brooks Robinson spend their entire carer in an Orioles uniform.

Currently, the franchise is going through rough times. In the early stages of a massive rebuilding process and are on pace to finish with over 100 losses for the second straight season. As a result, attendance has not been high at Camden Yards the last two seasons. The Orioles finished 27th in baseball in total attendance in 2018 and are on pace to finish 28th only ahead of the Rays and Marlins in 2019.

With 90-year-old owner Peter Angelos no longer active in his role his sons and according to a report from the Baltimore Post-Examiner reliable sources say they may be looking to sell the team and with the team’s lease on Oriole Park at Camden Yards set to expire in 2021 rumors speculation of relocation has taken off.

In the same Baltimore Post-Examiner report, one rumor stats the Angelos family has interest in “retaining ownership but the club moving to Nashville, where John Angelos and his wife have one of their homes.” However, a reliable source stated the Angelos prefers to sell the team to a buyer who would keep the team in the Charm City.

Luckily for Orioles fans several reports including from Forbes and the Baltimore Business Journal both feel that the team will remain in Baltimore despite the rumors of a potential move to Nashville being true.

Thus, as of now, there’s no reason to panic about Baltimore losing their beloved Orioles. As speculated potential buyer Raymond A. “Chip” Mason told the Baltimore Business Journal “If Baltimore wants to continue to hope to be considered a major city, you don’t want to lose professional sports franchises.”

While the idea of moving to Nashville may have been thrown around by the Angelos family, there’s no real reason to believe Baltimore is going to lose the Orioles any time soon.

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