Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said he was “very sorry for the fans in Oakland” because of the A’s plans to move to Las Vegas but denied claims by the Oakland mayor that the franchise he took advantage of the negotiations with the city to gain advantage.
Manfred reviewed the situation during a meeting of The Associated Press sports editors, adding that the bottom-place A’s will be able to put together a more competitive team in Nevada.
The franchise announced last week that it signed an agreement to acquire a parcel of land for a new retractable-roof stadium near the Las Vegas Strip after failing to build a new park on San Francisco Bay. The A’s have been playing in the dilapidated Oakland Coliseum for many years, scouting alternatives in Fremont and San Jose before trying to build Oakland’s waterfront.
Manfred had previously said MLB would consider expanding to 32 teams once the Tampa Bay A’s and Rays resolve longstanding uncertainty over their stadiums. He said Monday that he is confident the Rays will come to an agreement to stay in the Tampa area. It will be then when the expansion will enter the agenda.
Several cities have started preparing proposals, including Nashville, Charlotte, Montreal, Portland and Salt Lake City. Manfred acknowledged that “Nashville is on everyone’s list.”
He also expressed the desire for the sport to grow more in Mexico, but that “I have never been close to having Mexico as an opportunity for expansion.”
After the A’s announced the purchase of the land, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said in a statement that she was disappointed the A’s did not negotiate with the city as a “sincere partner.”
“It’s clear the A’s have no intention of staying in Oakland and have simply taken advantage of this process to try to get a better deal out of Las Vegas,” he said.
Manfred disputed that, mentioning that owner John Fisher dealt exclusively with Oakland from 2014-21 before exploring other places.
“I feel sorry for the fans in Oakland. I really do,” she noted. “But it’s not fair for the city of Oakland to target John Fisher.”
The A’s plan is to reach an agreement with the state of Nevada and Clark County for the financing with public and private resources for a new stadium with capacity for between 30,000 and 35,000 fans. The team hopes to break ground next year and move into their new home in 2027.