After the Pilots , Seattle's first Major League team was unable to stay afloat financially in Sicks' Stadium and moved to Milwaukee, plans began to bring the Majors back to Seattle started almost immediately. The first step was to have a building more suited for big-time professional sports.

Plans for a multi-purposed domed stadium were already in the early stages in the attempt to bring the NFL to the Pacific Northwest. While plans for a new stadium were coming together, Seattle filed a lawsuit against Major League Baseball.

The owners were afraid of the potential harm of a lawsuit, so in 1973, they decided to promise Seattle a new team during the next expansion. By 1975 it was looking as if the expansion team was a hollow promise, so Seattle tried to land a team in existence to move into the new Kingdome, which was to be completed in 1976.

A group of owners was all set to buy the Chicago White Sox and move to the Emerald City. The American League refused to allow one of the American League's charter franchises to leave the Windy City.

Fearful of further lawsuits and relocation threats, baseball finally fulfilled their promise and gave Seattle and Toronto expansion teams that would begin play in 1977.