Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre said that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred informed him during a 45-minute meeting Thursday that he is open to the city "hosting three or four regular-season games" in '16, according the CP. Coderre said the goal of the meeting was to show Manfred that Montreal is "serious about baseball," adding the encounter was "extremely positive." Coderre said that demonstrating to MLB that Montreal "can fill the Olympic Stadium for games in June or July is the 'next step' in bringing a team back to the city." He added that Manfred was "impressed by the fact the four preseason MLB games the city has hosted in the past two years ... were near sellouts and he 'didn’t close the door at all' to his request for several regular-season games next year." He added that six or seven teams "have expressed interest in playing games in the city next year." Coderre also "acknowledged that many steps lie ahead before Montreal gets a team back" after losing the Expos in '04 (CP, 5/28). The AP noted Manfred "recently said the interest shown by Montreal meant the city had successfully passed the first test toward a return of baseball." Manfred has said that the city "would need a new stadium to get an expansion team or a club to relocate" (AP, 5/28).
