Oakland Athletics relocation to Las Vegas thread: Move to Vegas approved by MLB owners - Will play in Sacramento for 3-4 years
- Thread starter Taro Tsujimoto
- Start date
voyageur
Hockey fanatic
- Jul 10, 2011
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I think the MLB goes to 32, and if they swapped Rays and Rockies in leagues could make it easy to get to 4 team divisions.
American League
West
Anaheim
Las Vegas (Oakland)
Seattle
Portland (Expansion)
Midwest
Colorado
Kansas City
Houston
Texas
Central
Minnesota
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland
Detroit
East
NY Yankees
Boston
Toronto
Baltimore
National League
West
San Fransisco
L.A. Dodgers
San Diego
Arizona
Central
Chicago Cubs
St. Louis
Milwaukee
Cincinnati
East
N. Y Mets
Philly
Pittsburgh
Washington
South
Atlanta
Nashville (Expansion)
Tampa
Florida
If Tampa falls apart, Charlotte is a safety valve.
If Montreal got Tampa, easy enough to move Washington to the South.
I think it would be a shame for the MLB to lose a market with such a winning tradition in baseball like Oakland, but money talks, Vegas is wealthier.
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
That last sentence is bullshit for multiple reasons. Land is worth exponentially more in a shitty neighborhood in Oakland than it is in Vegas. Then you factor in that this isn’t just a stadium, it’s an entire 12+ billion dollar development right on the dock near the water.
There’s a reason Fisher and co are doing everything they can to stay in Oakland. If Vegas was truly a better option they would have just announced the move. All the shit Manfred says is just him trying to pressure the Oakland CC to fund as much of it as possible.
Vegas will get their team, but it’ll be in expansion.
I once was a proponent of 4-team divisions, but I realized it would be better to limit the amount of travel across the Central/Mountain Time Zone line, with my proposal to expand to Montreal and Nashville, and realign MLB's 32 teams into a four-league history-based alignment.
Of the 24 Eastern/Central Time Zone teams, 16 would still make up the American and National Leagues, with each league having their 8 teams in the cities that had AL and/or NL teams in 1957 (the last year before the Dodgers and Giants moved west), with the exception of Miami replacing Brooklyn in the NL. The Nationals would thus move to the AL since Washington was an AL city in 1957.
The other 8 ET/CT teams would form the Continental League, named for the proposed third major league of the mid-20th century.
The 8 teams in the Western US form the Pacific Coast League, named for the AAA league that had major league dreams in the 1950s, with the AAA league now being called the Far West League.
This is actually a modified version of another user's proposal.
BigBadBruins7708
Registered User
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
Yet the median house cost in Oakland is 3x as much as Vegas.
Once you get off that little strip of casinos Vegas turns into a bum haven with no water. It sucks there and there’s a reason land is so cheap.
Headshot77
Bad Photoshopper
I think it's ridiculous how drawn out the A's saga has been.
I know the MLB wants to expand to 32 once TB and Oakland are "resolved". Honestly there are two strong organizational pushes in Nashville and Portland. The MLB should pull an NHL and get shovels in the ground in those cities now to use them as relocation threat cities ala Quebec
I know the MLB wants to expand to 32 once TB and Oakland are "resolved". Honestly there are two strong organizational pushes in Nashville and Portland. The MLB should pull an NHL and get shovels in the ground in those cities now to use them as relocation threat cities ala Quebec
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
BiolaRunner
Registered User
- Jan 19, 2018
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Ah, so advertising it for months makes it more than just a spring training game?
CokenoPepsi
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- Oct 28, 2016
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Vegas would have to be an indoor stadium correct? The weather is just too brutal in the Summer.
In door stadiums suck
In door stadiums suck
Scandale du Jour
JordanStaal#1Fan
Montreal packed Jays spring training games for years.
IU Hawks fan
They call me IU
Apples and oranges.
Vegas doesn't care about the A's (yet), it's Dodgers territory.
Scandale du Jour
JordanStaal#1Fan
Montreal does not really care about the Blue Jays either. Younger kids, maybe more, but still, not a huge Jays fan base.
The last time they did it, Vlad Guerrero was the draw... because of his Montreal ties.
justashadowof
Registered User
- Aug 15, 2020
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Chase Field in Phoenix seems to work for an even worse climate than Las Vegas.
BiolaRunner
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- Jan 19, 2018
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I'm just saying judging the market of an area based on one spring training game is stupid, especially when the amount that showed up to that game wasn't that far below the amount of people that showed up for regular season games in Oakland last year. Obviously, there are several factors going into the attendance issues the A's are having and I'm for the A's staying in Oakland.
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
Oakland has packed 55k into a football stadium on 48 hours notice, yet people continue to shit on the fan base for their current reluctance to buy tickets when the owner is actively sabotaging the on field product and disrespecting the city at every opportunity.
This was Vegas’ first opportunity to show what type of fan base they have with all the attention they’ve gotten. Exhibition game or not, it wasn’t that impressive.
BiolaRunner
Registered User
- Jan 19, 2018
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The amount that showed up is above average for a spring training game.
I wasn't trying to shit on the Oakland fanbase. I know there is a lot behind the attendance numbers.
BigBadBruins7708
Registered User
2019: Las Vegas led all of AAA in per game attendance
2020: pandemic
2021: Las Vegas led the AAA West in per game attendance, 2nd in all AAA.
2022: Las Vegas led the Pacific Coast West in per game attendance
Despite the stadium not having a roof and being out in the suburbs in Summerlin ~30 minutes from The Strip
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
Sacramento has had a great AAA base for over 3 decades, too. Don’t hear anyone talking them up for an mlb team.
Vegas will get their team, most likely through expansion.The point you (and many others) seem to miss is the fact that Oakland has proven that they can support their franchise. They don’t deserve to lose them just because ownership has been dog shit for the last 20-25 years.
KevFu
Registered User
Sacramento was trying for an MLB team back in the 80s. When they built their NBA arena for the Kings, they laid the foundation of an MLB stadium a few hundred yards away (like a Philadelphia-esque complex). You can still see it on Google Maps.
Vegas isn't really a contender for the 32nd team via expansion. There's not anyone who's looking to be the owner. Vegas loves the A's idea because the city, the team, and a casino can split the cost of a climate-controlled domed stadium... and that's about $2 billion.
A Vegas expansion team needs an owner, city and casino to split the cost of the $2 billion stadium, and the $2 billion expansion fee, and the actual cost of starting a team for a couple years without revenue.
I strongly suspect that Nashville is a very serious bid that will be granted, and Montreal and Portland are a lot less serious/realistic; and no where else has an ownership group.
Quid Pro Clowe
Registered User
If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be easier for all involved to find an ownership group than to look elsewhere have to and start the research/politics/logistics in another city?
Fisher’s business interests are in the Bay Area and it would be easier for him personally to just stay in Oakland. The A’s are also pretty much doing all the things another ownership group would need to do if they wanted to get a team in Vegas. I’m no billionaire, but I’m pretty certain it wouldn’t be that difficult to find a viable group with interest in territory on the strip.
KevFu
Registered User
I think it's just sheer economics. The Las Vegas Athletics are 1/6th the price than the Las Vegas Expansions would be.
There's three parties involved in making "the Las Vegas Athletics" (potentially) happen. The price tag is a $2 billion stadium. Everyone gets what they want for $700m each.
But a fee for an expansion team, the price doubles AND there's one less partner.
The Casino would rather be what amounts to a minority partner to get a stadium on their doorstep, advertising and suite/comp tickets for $700 than run the whole thing for $2 billion. MLB money is nice, but Casino money is better, and the employees don't make nine-figure payrolls.
I'd assume the city putting up $2b for a stadium is just a non-starter, too much dough.
