It had appeared as though the Oakland A’s had another city on their list of possible relocation options. Not only had A’s ownership been scheduled to head to Las Vegas on a tour of various sites for a new stadium, but there were reports that a trip to Portland would be happening as well. The city has been looking to attract a major league franchise for some time, and could hypothetically offer the A’s the waterfront ballpark they want.
That trek north is now coming into question. According to Matt Kawahara, the A’s do not have a trip planned to Oakland, nor any of the other cities, aside from Las Vegas, that had reached out.
An #Athletics spokesperson said today team officials do not have a trip planned to Portland, multiple cities have reached out, the A's focus at this time is on Oakland and exploring Las Vegas. Story: https://t.co/EE14cOh8Yy
— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) May 25, 2021
What is the real story between Portland and the Oakland A’s?
In theory, taking a ‘fact finding’ trip to Portland makes sense. It gives the A’s another potential option, and it would allow Major League Baseball to get a sense as to whether or not the city is ready to host an MLB franchise in the future.
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From just a selfish standpoint, it would make sense for the A’s ownership to take that trip up the Pacific coast. They could find out what Portland is willing to offer and use that as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Oakland and Las Vegas. The only thing that it would really cost ownership is time.
But the fact that the A’s are refuting reports of a trip to Portland may be a positive for Oakland. At this point, it would seem that the A’s are determined to either remain in the Bay Area or head to Las Vegas. While it may not feel like good news, having to fend off one city instead of a host of others can only improve the odds that the A’s remain in town.
However, that is now up to the Oakland City Council. A vote is scheduled for the Howard Terminal Project on July 20, at which point in time the A’s will determine their next course of action. If the vote does not go as they hope, it is possible that they will revisit the idea of moving to other locations. Portland could be back on the docket in that case.
For now, Oakland A’s ownership is refuting the reports that they are making a trek to Portland. However, that is all subject to change.