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now that would be interesting. Does it take a unanimous vote?
3/4s of owners must vote to approve. I think the large market owners have a point- why should a team receiving revenue sharing move into a market that isn't good enough for them to be self sufficient?
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/08/brewers-reportedly-willing-to-consider-relocation.htmlbrewers are having difficulties with the state legislature funding improvements according to the formula in their current lease. It runs through 2030, but they've indicated they'd explore leaving if the stadium isn't kept up. The improvements would run $290 million on top of $70 million that the stadium authority has on hand. Manfred indicates that, before expansion and other relocations, the As and Rays facilities have to be resolved.
I dont think the Bay Area was ever going to fully support two teams. But Vegas makes little sense either.
The moves discussed to San Jose / Santa Clara county seem like they would have potential, but once again, the fingerprints of Selig seemed to emerge on a territorial matter of dubious merit and to the apparent detriment of one of the teams involved:https://bleacherreport.com/articles/733481-bud-selig-and-the-oakland-as-new-stadium-a-lack-of-leadership-and-courage“Despite the superficially obvious solution (the A's move to San Jose), there remains a significant obstacle—the San Francisco Giants were given territorial rights over Santa Clara County (where San Jose is located) and they are not giving up their rights. This defending of territory by the Giants has created a bitter taste in the mouths of A's fans because the Giants only own Santa Clara County because A's ownership allowed the Giants to take control of the area (which was originally shared between the two clubs) because they desired to create a stadium down there in the 1980's.”
that waterfront site in Oakland would have been a beautiful place to see a game. And they could have potentially created development around it similar to what has happened around Nats park. Instead, they'll get a stadium in a place that really doesn't need one, on the site of the worst mass shooting in US history.
https://thenevadaindependent.com/article/after-five-years-as-rejected-a-12b-waterfront-ballpark-site-in-oakland-for-9-acres-on-the-strip
The pending move to Las Vegas still needs approval from Major League Baseball and the Las Vegas ballpark won’t be ready until 2028....During an interview last week, A’s President Dave Kaval called the waterfront land near downtown Oakland “an amazing site” but said along with delays caused by Schnitzer’s lawsuits, the site would require a 15-year development timeline. The A’s wouldn’t be able to move into a new ballpark in Oakland until sometime after 2030 — far too long for a team with a low payroll and few outside revenue sources.
The Oakland Athletics might have one foot out the door, but they just keep fighting for the good folks of Oakland and the entire Bay Area. Why? Because doggone it, that’s just the kind of people the A’s are.If you don’t believe me, ask the A’s.When plumes of smoke belched out of a scrap-metal fire at Schnitzer Steel on Wednesday, the start of a 24-hour fire, A’s president Dave Kaval broke his long media silence after tweeting in praise of himself and his boss, team owner John Fisher.
Since the rootless and ruthless Oakland Athletics seem to be serious about moving to Las Vegas, this is a good time to give that lucky metropolis some tips on what to expect from the folks who run their shiny new (recycled, actually) baseball team.For your reading pleasure, Vegas, here is the A’s genius five-point game plan:Promise ’em the moon, back your promises with fluffy clouds. This is the “trust me” school of business. Let’s say you want to buy a new home. You have no bank account, no job, bad credit and nothing to offer as collateral. You simply smile, put your hand out for the keys and say, “Trust me.”Latest example: Team president Dave Kaval promised via a Wall Street Journal interview that when the A’s become rooted in Las Vegas (my wordage, not his), they will jack up the player payroll to a competitive level.
What if the A’s wildly optimistic attendance projections fall a bit short, creating a cash deficit? Will team owner John “Fishhooks” Fisher dip into his own pocket to buy those free agents? (Joe DiMaggio’s friends referred to him as “Fishhooks,” because whenever a bar tab was presented, Joe acted like he had fishhooks in his pockets.)I’m not saying Vegas is a rube city for not demanding the A’s do more than make a promise, with penalties for failure to deliver. Vegas is a rube city, but it’s not alone. Oakland, when it negotiated with the A’s, was also willing to trust Fisher and Kaval when they claimed they would pony up to field a competitive team.Vegas, get ready to hear: We’ve had to slash our player payroll because, frankly, despite our heroic efforts, the community support for the A’s has been disappointing.Ignore reality. Sell your stadium concept to Vegas using a cartoonishly proportioned artist’s rendering of the new ballpark. Base crucial attendance projections and profit streams on pure conjecture and near impossibilities.Dazzle the legislature with a schematic of a financial waterfall, drenching every thirsty soul.In Oakland, the A’s plans at Howard Terminal faced a major obstacle in Schnitzer Steel. The A’s simply created a Schnitzer-free world. In all renderings and in most discussions, the mammoth, smoke-belching, steel-grinding, traffic-heavy operation simply ceased to exist.No parking near Howard Terminal? Don’t be silly. Everyone will arrive via bicycle or gondola.Take your time! Fisher is in zero hurry. He and Kaval move from one ballpark plan to another like two snails shopping at Costco. Their current Vegas plan is to open there for the 2028 season. If they hit a snag, they’ll just bump that date back a year or three. If a snag results in a shift to a different site, tack on a couple more years.Fisher, like the Dude in “The Big Lebowski,” abides. The team flounders in player poverty, the fans suffer and flee, predictable delays move ballpark plans back-back-back, but Fisher and Kaval have a corner table for dinner at the best restaurant in town.What’s the rush? As long as Fisher keeps his player payroll low enough to break even every season, he makes a ton of money on the steady appreciation in the value of an MLB franchise. Stop and smell the moolah!
Interesting take by Bay-Area sports personality Brodie Brazil on the recent relocation "epidemic" in MLB:https://youtu.be/ys6z5vgL4p0?si=4zraY2FwAftd7ciw
The Rays need to get out of St. Pete. Terrible location. Go to Tampa, Orlando, Nashville, Charlotte or Montreal.
