Vegas wants these teams badly while Oakland does not. Vegas is offering the moon as I understand it while the city of Oakland was trying to not be held hostage by a sports team. I can see both sides.
The Raiders and A’s were both extraordinarily patient with the city of Oakland. Both teams were storied franchises in that city. I think it’s very much a stretch to say they were “holding the city hostage”. Im not a huge fan of cities and counties subsidizing pro sports but that is the way it is. These venues do not make money for the taxpayers but do bring the majority of citizens a return when they win. On the flip side, a cheap lease and not having to pay for maintenance and improvements frees up a ton of cash to overpay players and gouge the fans, while collecting fat TV contracts. If the city of Oakland didn’t want to play the game then that is their choice. But they don’t deserve any sympathy for the consequences of their actions.
I was raised to be a Baltimore orioles fan but secretly grew up loving the A’s. Canseco and McGwire and Ricky Henderson talking about himself in 1st person. I have a romantic love for Oakland. I’ve never lived there but my friend ran a non-profit there and so much art, punk rock, hip hop and cool stuff has come out of Oakland and the A’s were kinda the epitome of all of that. The punk rock baseball team. The one that didn’t do stuff like the others, moneyball, swag, grit, hard work , David vs Goliath… Sad to see everything become corporate. Nothing is sacred
I’m sorry I wasn’t clear. I was trying to present the city of Oaklands p o v. I don’t agree. Also I def don’t know all the details. If they let me decide the Raiders and A’s would still be there. I grew up out there and I know how much these teams mean to the East Bay.
I understand. I’m a Florida boy, but George Blanda made me a Raiders fan one season with his comebacks and a few years later the green uniforms, Catfish Hunter and Reggie Jackson made me an A’s fan. Then Al Davis went crazy and the A’s forgot how to run a baseball organization. Oakland’s people are born to be sports fans.
No. The billionaire owners do. Oakland has lost all 3 major sports teams in a five year span. (Albeit one just switched sides of the Bay) Raiders, Warriors, A's all gone.
As a die hard Rays fan we came close to seeing a greedy owner take a team. As a kid I wanted MLB in Tampa Bay so bad. It was my favorite sport and I rooted for the Dodgers because there was no Florida team. I fell in love with the Rays and the Lightning from day one. (The Bucs were always there and I loved the Bandits too as a kid) Losing the Rays (even as a middle aged husband and dad who has long since moved away) would have sucked...nust for me, but my 14 year old son is also now a Rays die hard and he has never lived in Florida a day in his life. These owners destroy so much of a community fabric when they do this.
Agreed. Looks like the Rays new stadium will keep them in St Pete. Will be interesting to see how much attendance improves. The Miami Marlins management has been a classic example of ownership greed destroying what little fan base they had even after the city gave them a new stadium.
Great post and I’d like to respond to this part as a guy who grew up 30 miles from Oakland in a working class town in the 70s. The Oakland teams weren’t just about Oakland- the entire East Bay Area adopted them. San Francisco looked down on the rest of the Bay Area, and the city was so different in every way. This attitude was personified back when the Giants and A,s played in the 89 series. when asked about the traditional bet between mayors the SF mayor sneered “ There’s nothing in Oakland I want.” Giants and 49ers fans were the wine and cheese crowd. Raiders and A,s working class.
I live in Vegas and the A’s moving here is far from done. The current Tropicana site is not big enough and many locals do not want a ballpark on that site. The current owner of the A’s doesn’t want to spend money to get a new ballpark either. Also, a very recent rumor was the A’s meeting with the owners of the Rio about the land adjacent to the casino/hotel to use as a new home for the park. In the end who knows what will happen. Personally I think the team gets sold and stays in California. There is also drama about a new basketball arena being built on the north end of the strip near the new Fontainebleau. chevron-right
My dad’s family moved to SF when he was about 8-9, in the early 1920s. We moved to the East Bay in 1953. He used to hate the Oakland teams—going back to the old Pacific Coast League days with the Seals and Oaks. The 49ers started @ 1945, and the Raiders in 1960, and he hated them. We all thought he planned it that his funeral was the day the Raiders won their first Super Bowl
I have good friends who are diehard Cleveland Browns fans, and they spit when they hear Art Modell‘s name.
