The A's may know the way to San Jose

[marlinfan]

The A's may know the way to San Jose

By Paul T. Rosynsky and Chris DeBenedetti, Staff Writers

Article Last Updated:11/06/2006 05:12:54 PM PST

OAKLAND - The Oakland A's could soon be San Jose A's, as sources confirmed today that the team's owner is expected to have a press conference with Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig next week to announce a move to Fremont.

A source close to the Fremont negotiations said Monday that Selig will visit the area next Tuesday for a press conference with A's owner Lewis Wolff and executives at Cisco Systems Inc., a company that owns a 143-acre plot of land targeted for a new stadium.

The source said that press conference could take place at Cisco Systems headquarters in San Jose.

In addition, a longtime South Bay booster said Wolff told him three weeks ago that a deal to buy the Cisco land was just about complete.

``He was in my office here about three weeks ago and told me it was pretty much a done deal,'' said Larry Stone, the Santa Clara County Assessor and member of Baseball San Jose. ``He was very very confident that the deal could be done with Cisco.''

Wolff would not comment on the press conference or relocation plans Monday. Reached on his cell phone Monday morning Wolff said he was too busy to talk and referred questions to team officials.

Asked if he is moving to Fremont, Wolff said, ``I gotta go.''

As news of the press conference spread Monday questions surrounding the team's future home evolved into questions about its possible name.

Although Wolff is forbidden from building a ballpark in Santa Clara County because of Major

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League Baseball's territorial rights rules, those rules do not prevent him from taking the name San Jose or Silicon Valley.

``There are no rules on the books (regarding names),'' said Richard Levin, spokesman for Major League Baseball. ``It is something the commissioner would have to deal with.''

Wolff has said in the past that he needs to attract more companies to invest in the team through the purchase of luxury boxes and in-stadium advertising. Having a name San Jose or Silicon Valley could accomplish that goal, some said.

``The reason he is moving down here is to get closer to where the financial capacity is,'' Stone said. ``Look, they are going to be 25 miles from Oakland and 4 miles from San Jose.''

Oakland officials said they have no information about a potential move. But Fremont city officials said Wolff has already scheduled meetings with every city council member. Those meetings will take place Wednesday.

Wolff's desire to move the team to Fremont began the day Wolff was hired by former team owners Steve Schott and Ken Hoffman as vice president for venue development.

Although Wolff pledged to seek sites in Oakland first, the idea of having a ballpark in Fremont never ceded.

Its proximity to San Jose and open tracks of land always kept it a contender as a future Athletics home.

The speculation came closer to reality in March after Wolff declared that Oakland did not have the time or space to build a new ballpark.

It reached a fever pitch this summer after it was revealed that Wolff had bought at least 10 acres of land in Fremont next door to a 143-acre site he had targeted as a perfect location for a new ballpark.

Wolff has always wanted a large swathe of land for his new ballpark. His idea was to build a ``baseball village'' around the stadium to help pay for its construction. Such a village would include housing, retail stores and the baseball stadium.

http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_4611561

Here we go....

[Guest]

Silicon Valley? Who you crappin'.

[Cyclopsis Joe]

...San Jose A's? S..wh..

Uh..

I'm dumbstruck.

[rebelx]

Why couldn't they still be the Oakland A's? Fremont's not that far from Oakland, for crying out loud.

[OMMF]

...San Jose A's? S..wh..

Uh..

I'm dumbstruck.

San Jos-A's sounds better.

[Guest]

They can and should still be the Oakland A's. Unlike the Angels who can change their location around a lot because nobody really cares, Oakland baseball has a rich and storied legacy. From Charlie O. Finley and the Hairs vs. Squares, to the Bash Brothers, to Billy Beane and Moneyball. That's all Oakland.

"Fremont Athletics" means nothing. "California Athletics" would piss off the other four teams. "Bay Area Athletics" is unclear, and "Silicon Valley Athletics" is tiptoeing into Utah Jazz territory. To abandon all that in a cross-country move would be one thing, but as long as they're in Alameda County, they should be the Oakland A's.

[Yac12]

"Silicon Valley Athletics" is tiptoeing into Utah Jazz territory.

I think they would be tiptoeing into the Golden State Warriors territory with the name.

[Guest]

Oh, that too. Must suck for Oakland to never call its teams by the city name. Golden State Warriors, The Raiders, and now _____ A's. Anyway, I was just referring to the cognitive dissonance of computer programmers and roided-up ballplayers. Now, if you're a programmer, don't go "how DARE you. I am in GREAT shape. It doesn't MATTER what my job is." It was just a joke. Let's be pals.

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

if there is a scheduled riot over this, i'm heading to Oakland with my lawnchair, sunglasses, popcorn and drink. Once this is done this is done it should give me enough time to head to Montreal when it is announced the Canadiens is getting a buffaslug makeover in the new RBK's.

enough joking around. Anything other than the Oakland A's just doesn't right. WHen i think San Jose, i always thought Sharks. When i heard Oakland i always thought A's and Raiders. This sounds like a move to squeeze a few more dollars.

[Guest]

Oh, and guys, since we're talking California baseball moves, don't do it. Just don't. You know what I mean. Do. Not. Do. It.

[leopard88]

Oh, and guys, since we're talking California baseball moves, don't do it. Just don't. You know what I mean. Do. Not. Do. It.

Do what? Make some crack about naming them the San Jose A's of Oakland, or something like that? I would never do that.

[bterreson]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=26...&type=story

Tuesday, November 7, 2006

Report: Athletics will build stadium in Fremont

ESPN.com news services

The Oakland Athletics are expected to announce next week they will build a new stadium in suburban Fremont, Calif., the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday, citing sources close to negotiations for the deal.

The newspaper reported the team wants to acquire a 143-acre site near the former Baylands Raceway Park and build a privately-funded 36,000-seat ballpark at an estimated cost of $300 million. The property is currently owned by the city of Fremont and is leased to high-tech firm Cisco Systems.

The Chronicle reported Athletics managing partner Lew Wolff and baseball commissioner Bud Selig -- who were fraternity brothers at the University of Wisconsin -- are expected to make the announcement at a news conference in the Bay Area next Tuesday.

A's spokesman Jim Young told the Chronicle he would not confirm the timing or content of the announcement. He did tell the newspaper "From an organizational standpoint, we are getting closer to announcing some concrete plans that will significantly impact the future of the A's in the Bay Area and plans that the owner has been working very hard on for more than two years."

Fremont is about 27 miles from Oakland and 18 miles from San Jose. Major League Baseball has always recognized San Jose as part of the San Francisco Giants' market under its territory rules, but the Fremont site is just short of the Santa Clara County line and would not trigger a territorial dispute.

During the American League Championship Series, Selig said he didn't have a problem with the A's moving to Fremont because "that's their territory."

The Athletics are in a year-to-year lease at McAfee Coliseum through 2010, with a team option to renew on a year-to-year basis through 2013, the newspaper reported. The team has called the Coliseum home since moving to Oakland in 1968, but has not been happy with the stadium since it was refurbished to accommodate the return of the NFL's Oakland Raiders from Los Angeles.

This past season, the A's didn't sell tickets for the Coliseum's upper deck and covered those seats with a green tarp.

Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente said he wasn't surprised by the development, and told the newspaper it was unlikely the city would get into a bidding war to keep the A's in the city limits.

"Teams and team owners look for the best deals for themselves, and that's understandable,'' he told the Chronicle. "There's nothing we can do about it.''

Outgoing Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown told the newspaper he had spoken with Wolff several times, but that Fremont had a crucial advantage on Oakland: "Fremont has the land."

[Puckguy14]

Fremont has the land, and actually wants the team. Remember, when the Raiders returned from LA, the A's had absolutely no say when Mt. Davis was constructed, which in the end proved to be the reason why the A's want out of the Coliseum. Oakland got money to redo the Coliseum Arena and are still paying for the renovation to McAfee Coliseum. The parking lot can hold another stadium and especially since BART goes right to the stadium.

That being said, Oakland sadly deserves to lose the A's. They brought them a ton of success and they got treated like $#!+

[Guest]

Oh, and guys, since we're talking California baseball moves, don't do it. Just don't. You know what I mean. Do. Not. Do. It.

Do what? Make some crack about naming them the San Jose A's of Oakland, or something like that? I would never do that.

YOU ARE DEAD WHERE YOU STAND

[Huskyfan82]

The Golden State Athletics. HAHA.

David

[Brian in Boston]

They will most likely remain the Oakland Athletics.

Using Oakland as the place-name allows the franchise to maintain a tie to the last 39 years of the team's history, including four World Series Championships. More importantly, it will maintain some tie to the team's current East Bay fan-base.

There's no need to adopt San Jose as the place-name, as such a move might well alienate members of the team's current East Bay fan-base. Further, branding the team as a "San Jose" franchise will do little to boost ticket sales in Greater San Jose beyond what they are already likely to grow to given the franchise shift to nearby Fremont.

[FiddySicks]

Sacramento. Anything less would be a dissapointment.

For some reason I think ima end up dissapointed....

[charger77]

Why not still call them the Oakland A's

The Pistons play in Auburn Hills not Detroit.

The Lions were out of Pontiac forever, not as they are now.

Yes, I know the Lions played out of Tiger Stadium before the Silver Dome.

Dan

[jkrdevil]

They will change the name to San Jose. As stated in the article it will help to get the San Jose corporations to buy the luxery boxes in the new stadium. Also let's remember that San Jose is now the biggest city in the Bay Area. Outside of past championships there is no reason to keep the name Oakland and if championships are the reason the team would still be known as the Philadelphia Athletics.

The name will be changed to San Jose unless MLB for some odd reason denies it. Although I can't see Bud screwing over an owner of a team. And if San Jose is not allowed they will probably go with Silicon Valley.

[Guest]

But San Jose, and by extension, Santa Clara County, is legally Giants territory, and they aren't in either of those any more than they are in Oakland. It'd be best to just stay with Oakland.