Oakland Athletics fans react to city mayor presenting ballpark proposal to MLB commissioner to keep team in Bay Area: "30 years too late"
In the latest last-ditch effort to keep the Oakland Athletics from moving to Las Vegas, Oakland mayor Sheng Thao met with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to give a ballpark proposal in the first meeting between the two parties.
The meeting took place in a Seattle hotel room prior to the All-Star festivities, according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. Thao presented 31 packages with the new Oakland proposal, one for Manfred and one for each of the MLB owners.
EXCLUSIVE: Oakland mayor Sheng Thao met with commissioner Rob Manfred to demonstrate city made ballpark proposal to A’s. Story, including PDFs of documents Thao presented to Manfred: theathletic.com/4681570/2023/0… Q&A with Thao: theathletic.com/4681749/2023/0…
The move of the Oakland Athletics has remained highly controversial, with the city and the league taking shots at one another through the media. On June 15, Manfred said in a press conference:
"There is no Oakland offer, OK? They never got to a point where they had a plan to build a stadium at any site."
Thao released a statement in reference to Manfred's comments, and said the claim was "totally false."
@Ken_Rosenthal 30 years too late.
@Ken_Rosenthal And Manfred didn’t care right? He is gonna do what his billionaire friend tells him to do
@Ken_Rosenthal Manfred watched a movie silently in his head the whole time
The state senate in Nevada passed a $380 million bill to help fund a proposed stadium in Las Vegas that would serve as the new home for the Oakland Athletics in mid-June. That bill was promptly signed by Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo.
Seventy-five percent of MLB owners need to sign off on the move, but it is assumed at this time that the move will be rubber stamped by those voting.
@Ken_Rosenthal I’m tired of everyone just glazing over the fact that Oakland is an absolute horrible place lol
@Ken_Rosenthal Unless there is a ton of tax money flowing into A’s pockets, they are not staying.
@Ken_Rosenthal What a waste of breath & effort.
In May, the Athletics organization purchased 35 acres of real estate at the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip. They plan to build a planned 30,000-seat stadium that is expected to cost approximately $1.5 billion.
@Ken_Rosenthal Too little too late
@Ken_Rosenthal Manfred won’t budge. He wants to see the Vegas move happen. He sees $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.
@Ken_Rosenthal Don’t matter. MLB wants Vegas. It’s done. Royals are up next.
A move to Las Vegas would be the fourth geographic shift for the current Oakland Athletics in the 123-year history of the team.
The Athletics began life in Philadelphia in 1901, playing in the city until 1954. In 1955, the Athletics began a brief stint in Kansas City as MLB teams began to move off the East Coast into the wider reaches of the United States.
The team only lasted in America's heartland until 1967, when the move was made to Oakland.
@Ken_Rosenthal I feel bad for A’s fans. I don’t want to see them move BUUUUT I do want LV to have it’s own Major League Baseball team. Just kinda shitty how it’s goin down
Oakland Athletics remain the worst team in MLB
While the future of the team remains up in the air, the Athletics remain the worst team in MLB. Oakland comes out of the All-Star break with a 25-67 record.
If that pace holds over the second half of the season, 2023 would go down as the third-worst season since the team was founded in 1901.