Although the deadline had passed for the Oakland A’s and current city administration to have a binding resolution for the Howard Terminal Project, there had been silence regarding any changes of plans.
That is, until Saturday. Commissioner Rob Manfred stated during an appearance with Chris Russo that he is “no longer optimistic” that A’s will be staying in Oakland. Instead, he expects them to land in Las Vegas in the near future.
Rob Manfred still pushing Oakland A’s to Las Vegas
It truly should not be a surprise. After all, Manfred had indicated that the A’s may not be charged a relocation fee to move to Las Vegas, a potential savings of up to $1 billion. It had felt as though the league was pushing the A’s to the desert as Manfred continued to rattle sabers about the Howard Terminal ballpark.
The A’s have already been using the stalled discussions around Howard Terminal, and the delays caused by a changing of the political guard, as an excuse. Hal the Hot Dog Guy is not coming back due to those delays. It is possible that the A’s look to slash payroll even further since they are already crying poverty.
And that is just going to work to the league’s advantage. The A’s inability to get fans to the ballpark will be pointed to as a reason why they have to move. It will be conveniently ignored that they scrapped the roster, doubled ticket prices, and eliminated popular fan-friendly activities – the attendance numbers will be the focal point. These delays just let the league continue their narrative as they push the A’s out of town.
Rob Manfred says he is no longer optimistic that the Oakland A’s will stay in town. It sounds like he is going to get his wish as it comes to Las Vegas.