Stadium/Arena Saga Omnibus

[monkeypower]

On 5/12/2021 at 10:18 AM, DukeofChutney said:

Just a curveball question - what location would be the biggest surprise for the move?

 

Doesn't have to be one of the locations already mentioned. I'm thinking Seattle Pilots level of unexpected here.

 

 

Well the Regina Red Sox summer collegiate team have recently submitted plans to the City of Regina for a new stadium and the City of Medicine Hat started three million dollars worth of renovations to the baseball stadium there a couple days ago. The Medicine Hat A's were Oakland's Rookie League team for the 1977 season (before they switched affiliation to the Jays the year after) so there is a history there...

 

I think either of those would be pretty surprising and unexpected.

[neo_prankster]

But seriously though, where could the Athletics realistically move if it came to that?

[The_Admiral]

Nowhere. I don't think they'll move. 

[FiddySicks]

1 hour ago, neo_prankster said:

But seriously though, where could the Athletics realistically move if it came to that?

I honestly wonder if the league would still consider contraction at any point. 

[kolob]

12 minutes ago, FiddySicks said:

I honestly wonder if the league would still consider contraction at any point. 

 

Well, it'd have to be a league and player decision. And, after 2001, I don't think we'll see that happen again. My guess is the A's will either buy back rights to San Jose from the Giants or you'll see a Raiders-like move where the A's park themselves in Oakland for a couple lackluster seasons until they can move to either Portland or Vegas when a suitable stadium is ready.

[GDAWG]

2 hours ago, FiddySicks said:

I honestly wonder if the league would still consider contraction at any point. 

 

Players Association would respond with a stern "no" on that.

[Wings]

Personally I think Fisher will end up selling the A's to Warriors owner Joe Lacob and a bunch of his rich buddies. They'll build a new ballpark at the Coliseum site and try to revitalize the area around it. A soccer specific stadium for the Oakland Roots might be included in a revitalized complex. 

[DukeofChutney]

11 hours ago, monkeypower said:

 

Well the Regina Red Sox summer collegiate team have recently submitted plans to the City of Regina for a new stadium and the City of Medicine Hat started three million dollars worth of renovations to the baseball stadium there a couple days ago. The Medicine Hat A's were Oakland's Rookie League team for the 1977 season (before they switched affiliation to the Jays the year after) so there is a history there...

 

I think either of those would be pretty surprising and unexpected.

Well I think that is probably the most unexpect option should it come to pass. And, yeah its unlikely, but weirder things have happened in sports.

 

 

I should add, that my earlier comment about the Rays going to Oakland was tongue-in-cheek due to the rhyming of A's and Rays. Should've put an emoji in that post..

[GhostOfNormMacdonald]

52 minutes ago, DukeofChutney said:

but weirder things have happened in sports.

Idk what in sports history would be weirder than the Medicine Hat A's

[Joke Insurance]

On 5/12/2021 at 4:17 PM, McCall said:

SAN ANTONIO & AUSTIN (One or the other, basically close enough to be considered one market): Possibility.

SACRAMENTO: Not really.

 

Between San Antonio and Austin, which city do you feel would be better suited?

 

And why 'not really' for Sacramento? Just curious.

[monkeypower]

3 hours ago, DukeofChutney said:

but weirder things have happened in sports.

 

2 hours ago, NormMacdonald said:

Idk what in sports history would be weirder than the Medicine Hat A's

 

There are people here worried about little things like pOpUlAtIoN and fIlLiNg 81 NiGhTs A yEaR in the these other places, but Medicine Hat is rocking a population of 63,260, so put that one into the pro column.

 

The stadium is also already called Athletic Park, so that's another point for Med Hat.

[DukeofChutney]

2 hours ago, NormMacdonald said:

Idk what in sports history would be weirder than the Medicine Hat A's

haha yeah true. That probably would be the definitive 'weirdest move in history' - which is why I'd love to see it.. (I know it won't happen).

 

There are plenty of moves that have happened in the past that probably would have seen as unlikely at the time. (Dodgers leaving Brooklyn, let alone the Giants joining them out West). Plus I'm sure there are dozens of relocations that nearly happened but didn't (ie. Giants to Tampa or Predators to Hamilton).

 

Of course, I appriciate that there's a lot of practical reasons that stop these wild moves these days. (money being the main one).

[MJWalker45]

52 minutes ago, Joke Insurance said:

 

Between San Antonio and Austin, which city do you feel would be better suited?

 

And why 'not really' for Sacramento? Just curious.

San Antonio would be better for more ready made baseball fans, but space wise Austin is probably in a better position. Especially since they just had to do a bunch of survey work on multiple sides for the soccer team. 

[LMU]

9 hours ago, Wings said:

Personally I think Fisher will end up selling the A's to Warriors owner Joe Lacob and a bunch of his rich buddies. They'll build a new ballpark at the Coliseum site and try to revitalize the area around it. A soccer specific stadium for the Oakland Roots might be included in a revitalized complex. 

MLB itself as stated that the Coliseum site is a non-starter.  It's Howard Terminal or bust, regardless of who's writing the checks.

[Wings]

10 minutes ago, LMU said:

MLB itself as stated that the Coliseum site is a non-starter.  It's Howard Terminal or bust, regardless of who's writing the checks.

 

Money can change minds. 

[neo_prankster]

Could the A's just share Oracle Park with the Giants?

[MJWalker45]

4 minutes ago, neo_prankster said:

Could the A's just share Oracle Park with the Giants?

Maybe short term is a possibility, but if San Francisco is willing to do that, why not just give up claims to San Jose? 

[neo_prankster]

Just now, MJWalker45 said:

Maybe short term is a possibility, but if San Francisco is willing to do that, why not just give up claims to San Jose? 

But if the A's do regain the rights to San Jose, could they build a park next door to the Tank?

[FiddySicks]

1 hour ago, neo_prankster said:

Could the A's just share Oracle Park with the Giants?

So, I mentioned a few pages ago how I agreed with the Giants right to claim San Jose. And I very much do. Also, from a legal sense, they have a very strong case. But lets not fool ourselves here, though. In a not so subtle way, the Giants are trying to starve the A’s out of the market completely. They don’t want the competition. They see the market in San Jose and have found a very successful way to tap into that, and don’t want to have to share. From a business standpoint, I understand that. It’s valuable territory and support has already been somewhat fragile. I don’t really think there’s ever been a time where both teams have drawn really well simultaneously, and if there was a time, it was short lived. The Bay Area on the surface seems like it should be able to support multiple teams, but historically it just hasn’t.

 

So, tl;dr, there’s no way the Giants are going to share their park with their main competition, even temporarily, when they’re both trying to wrestle control of an area 25-50 miles south from where either of them play. It would take the league forcing them (which I don’t think they can) or an act of absolutely reckless charity (similar to the A’s giving up the rights in the first place) for that to ever happen. 

[McCall]

1 hour ago, neo_prankster said:

But if the A's do regain the rights to San Jose, could they build a park next door to the Tank?

The A’s never had the rights to San Jose. They were given to the Giants as a condition of the A’s being allowed to move to Oakland. So, no. Because the Giants have no interest in giving up those territorial rights.