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Oakland A’s ownership angering other MLB owners as well

By David Hill

OAKLAND, CA - JULY 19: Owner Lew Wolff and Owner John Fisher of the Oakland Athletics talk in the stands during the game against the Houston Astros at the Oakland Coliseum on July 19, 2016 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Astros 4-3. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - JULY 19: Owner Lew Wolff and Owner John Fisher of the Oakland Athletics talk in the stands during the game against the Houston Astros at the Oakland Coliseum on July 19, 2016 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Astros 4-3. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images) /
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The Oakland A’s fanbase was not exactly enamored with the team’s offseason. Despite their reinstatement into the revenue sharing group, ownership demanded that payroll be slashed to as close to $50 million as possible. Matt Olson, Chris Bassitt, Sean Manaea, and Matt Chapman were shipped away. Any worthwhile free agents were ignored. And the cuts are going to continue at the trade deadline.

It turns out that the A’s fans are not the only ones who are infuriated with ownership. According to Jon Heyman, “at least a few” MLB owners are angered that the A’s conducted their fire sale directly after being added to the revenue sharing group.

Oakland A’s ownership not making friends in MLB

As was noted in Heyman’s article, the crux of that anger is how John Fisher is using that money. The point of revenue sharing, as was pointed out, is to help teams field a competitive roster and keep players. That money is meant to go back into the team, not into the pockets of the owners. Another owner just referred to the A’s as “a mess.”

Calling the franchise a mess is an understatement. There is no real motivation for ownership to win as they are far more interested in lining their pockets. Even if they were to move, as another owner suggested as the solution, Fisher would remain the owner. That would clearly solve nothing.

Maybe this can be the beginning of the end. MLB owners tend to have a way of forcing out those that no longer suit their needs or sensibilities. While none of the owners are going to gripe about making as much of a profit as possible, the idea that another owner is literally taking their money and keeping it in his bank account is galling. And it is something that is going to receive a lot of attention.

The present and near future are not going to be pretty for the Oakland A’s. Fisher is still the owner and is still far more interested in growing his bottom line than he is in fielding a competitive roster. But now that he is pocketing money from the rest of the league, and refusing to even spend that, his profit margins are going to come under scrutiny.

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Oakland A’s fans have had enough of their ownership. They may have some company as other owners are angered with the A’s spending habits.