New Rule. All teams must play in a stadium adjoining a corn field accessible only on a dirt road or two lane "highway."
Vegas mayor was interviewed on radio recently saying she doesn't think there will be any public financing of a ballpark in Vegas and that she thought Vegas was being used as leverage for the A's with respect to Oakland....meanwhile: https://www.ktvu.com/news/supes-breathe-new-life-into-oakland-as-waterfront-ballpark-plan OAKLAND, Calif. - A move by the Alameda County Board of Supervisors is breathing new hope into the possibility of keeping the A's in Oakland. Late Tuesday night, the supervisors approved a motion 4-1 to support a new ballpark for the team. None of this, of course, even close to a done deal, but it is certainly a positive sign for fans who were starting to give up hope that the A's would stick around. But the vote signals that the county wants to stay at the table and keep working on a financial package for a new stadium for the A's. Though the vote is non-binding, the development will move towards creating a $12 billion stadium that can seat 35,000 people, along with 1.8 million square feet of commercial space and a concert venue at the Charles P. Howard Terminal in the Port of Oakland. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf considers the vote to be a "historic action that creates a clear path to keep the A's rooted in Oakland", she wrote in a statement. "We look forward to continue working with the A's, and to issuing a final Environmental Impact Report by the end of this year as well as negotiating a binding Development Agreement. We will return to City Council for a final vote as swiftly and prudently as possible," Shaaf stated. The vote isn't met with total enthusiasm, however. President Keith Carson, among other supervisors, worried about the outcome of a massive financial investment like this, along with some of Oakland's economic consultants making assumptions on legislation that has yet to pass. "I have to believe there are other ways in which they can come to the financing on this deal," he said. "I know this is non-binding, but let's be honest, once we take a political non-binding position it's almost impossible for us to take that back." The East Oakland Stadium Alliance says they are disappointed in the Board for giving into pressure from Oakland and the A's team, though grateful that the policymakers acknowledged concerns of affordable housing and other resources that the county needs. "The Board should not commit millions of public tax dollars toward a private project that will displace West Oakland residents, put thousands of working-class union port jobs at risk, and jeopardize the county's long-term financial stability," the organization said in a statement. "We are confident that upon having additional time to do a thorough analysis the Board will come to understand the overwhelming negative implications of this proposal and decline to move forward."
Bad end. One of the richest owners in Baseball is about to fleece a city that has no business hosting an MLB team. Billions of taxpayer dollars for a giant stadium quarter in a city with rising crime, lowering employment opportunities, and already crippling tax rates. All this for for a cheap owner with a bottom 10 payroll for the foreseeable future with a grand total of one playoff series win under his belt?
Not really anything to do with Oakland Relocation but I think it’s pretty hilarious that the Padres basically just poached Bob Melvin(a top tier manager, IMO) from our division rival.
Glad to see heads rolling for that disaster of a season. I want Preller gone next year if they aren't playing in October.
What was the purpose for Oakland? They exercised his option for 2022 but allowed him to pursue other jobs. Apparently they get no compensation. I wonder if they hire the former Cardinals manager. Edit...does Melvin get full control? From what I heard, Preller wants to control everything which is why there was a disagreement between him and Tingler, which eventually lead to the firing of Tingler.
If I had to guess, they’re preparing to lose free agents such as Olson, Chapman, Manaea, etc. Melvin knows the direction of the A’s and how they operate. It seems like once a decade, they accumulate a bunch of talent around the same time through the draft then suddenly lose them all due to their unwillingness to spend. Melvin likely won’t have a say in roster construction by any means but with Clevinger coming back, they will have a formidable squad and I think Melvin will definitely help them reach their potential as a team.
This is why I'd be really disappointed if Oakland ponies up billions of taxpayer dollars for this team. Why build a stadium for an owner who openly and notoriously cuts costs in favor of winning? Oakland rebuilt, contended, and is rebuilding again all in the span of the Astros contention window. Thats what being cheap gets you. We rightfully ran the oilers out of town for choking every year, Oakland should do the same to the A's.
El Paso Texas El Paso Texas, Juárez Mexico, & Las Cruces New Mexico make up an urban area of over 2.7 million people. Larger than the population base of a dozen existing teams. Too big to be a small market team & too small to be a large market team. No other major spots teams in the area to compete with. All this and best of all it is in Texas. Wouldn't it be nice to have three teams in our division all in Texas? El Passo is about 750 miles from Houston. It is 635 miles from Dallas & 430 miles from Phoenix. More than enough distance to keep from interloping on existing teams fan bases. It seems like an ideal location for Oakland to relocate to.
LOL. It is not about Population alone. It is about Corporate base. Teams make money based on partnerships with Business. Those businesses buy Suites and ticket blocks. They purchase advertising. That's why it is important to have Fortune 500 companies in the Metro Area of sports teams.
Not around for back then, but the Rockets and Astros had this city by the balls after the Oilers left. There's an alternate reality where Houston has no MLB team, gets the expansion Bobcats, and is stuck with the Texans.
Not really. The funding for the Texans/Astros ballparks were approved concurrently. They would have never just had the Texans... and of all the owner bluffs, Draytons was probably the weakest. The Rockets wanted in on that and their initial proposition failed (Paul Bettencourt?), and they were looking at Lexington Kentucky for leverage (KFC arena?). There's got approved a year or so later ("save our rockets?"). Keep in mind, this was the height of tax-payers being forced to fund stadiums or teams threatening to leave. Pretty dark times. Now a days, teams know the true value of what bigger media markets bring, and the majority of the franchise value is tied into the TV deals, not necessarily the stadium (as was once the case), thus picking up and moving to a smaller market willing to offer everything for free is no longer the threat it once was.
