It was somewhat surprising how many readers, using Twitter as an extremely unofficial gauge, seem to have taken recent comments from Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber in regards to the Scorpions’ potential membership as unequivocally negative.

Cause for celebration? Definitely not. Garber pointedly said that San Antonio hadn’t been high on the list of candidates when the expansion process was announced last summer. He also indicated that Atlanta was a mortal lock for one of the two remaining berths, with Minneapolis not terribly far behind.

From that standpoint, perhaps some angst is understandable. Once the 24-team threshold is reached, there’s no telling when, or even if, MLS will expand further.

But Garber also dropped a few morsels that left the door, if not busted off the hinges, cracked more than enough to provide hope that MLS could very well be in San Antonio’s future. (Indeed, respected Sports Illustrated scribe Grant Wahl tweeted that he thinks Atlanta and San Antonio, not Minneapolis, are “most likely” to earn the next two berths.)

It remains to be seen how much weight Garber’s comments have. Having covered UTSA’s ride to Division I membership, I can say from experience that these processes tend to be extremely unpredictable. In the case of the Roadrunners, they went from potential disaster, to success, to potential disaster again, before finding a final home with their acceptance into Conference USA.

So while acknowledging that anything can change at any time, here are three things that stand out several days removed from Garber’s Q&A:

1. Garber said further expansion into Texas is “likely”

Likely is a far cry from definitely. And it’s a legitimate questions whether there’s enough quality talent to continue expanding a league that already feels a bit watered down even at 19. But should MLS indeed tap Atlanta and Minneapolis to shore up the remaining holes in its geographic footprint, revisiting Texas at some point makes sense for any number of reasons. Not only does the Lone Star State have a massive share of the Hispanic demographic MLS covets, it boasts an economy that would have ranked 14th worldwide in 2013 as a sovereign nation. Then there’s the fact that Dallas and Houston, the only two current reps, have both endorsed the Scorpions.

2. There is no guarantee MLS is married to just 24 teams by 2020

At least one observer seems to think MLS will make a spot for the Scorpions beyond the 24-team threshold should they shore up their financial backing. (As with any anonymous source, take that with a boulder of salt.) Along those lines, it was telling that Garber, in contrast to the definitive “no” with which he responded to a question about Chivas relocating, was cagey on the subject. A big key could be FIFA, which is said to prefer capping the league at 24. But now that soccer finally seems to have found purchase in the U.S., it’s hard to imagine the sport’s governing body will do anything to stunt further growth by preventing MLS from adding more attractive markets.

3. San Antonio has a massive head start over Austin

While we have no specific word from MLS, it’s almost unthinkable it would add both San Antonio and Austin. As such, it could very well come down to a head-to-head battle. That’s a possibility that already has some local fans quaking in their boots, and with good reason; Austin is absolutely loaded with potential. But from what we know publicly, that’s all it is right now — potential. The Scorpions already have a soccer-specific stadium, the vocal support of mayor Julian Castro, and almost three years to build its fan base. In contrast, Austin has yet to conduct a feasibility study. A big-money sponsor could close the gap in short order. But right now, San Antonio holds a considerable lead.

With six more years until the 2020 deadline, there’s plenty of time for Garber to wait and see what — if anything — materializes in Austin and elsewhere before making any definitive decisions. Frankly, he’d be foolish not to.

That could allow other cities to move past the Scorpions in a race they currently seem to sit no worse than third for the final two expansion spots. (Provided, of course, MLS adds just two.) But it also gives them time to shore up their financial backing and continue to marshal fan support, factors that would make their bid seemingly air tight.

So step back from the ledge and take a deep, cleansing breath. The real race might have only just started, and the Scorpions are off to a promising start.