Marcus Semien, Matt Olson, and Ron Washington sound off on Athletics' ownership disinterest in winning

They say if you know, you know. And when it comes to Oakland Athletics' front-office issues, I'm pretty sure all three of Ron Washington, Marcus Semien, and Matt Olson know.

In a talk with Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the former A's superstars (along with other former members of the Athletics baseball organization) shared a couple of solid critics on the ownership of the franchise and the disinterest they've shown in improving the team and putting a competitive product on and off the field.

Semien, a Bay Area native, now plays for the Texans Rangers where he's putting together a hella strong MVP case for when the season is over in a few months. He, who was part of a strong team just a few years ago in Oakland, revealed that he "heard [the A's front office] had these plans and none of it really happened," referring to putting and keeping together a contending team.

The former A's standout said the outcome "was the disappointing part for me." Most importantly, Semien made clear that "the fans in that area deserve something better for a stadium."

Although Semien acknowledged that the A’s have "always gone through waves, three or four years good, three or four years bad," that seemingly didn't make him feel any better about how the front office and the ownership operated. "That’s just kind of the nature of how the owner wants to spend, players get expensive. When you have a special group like the one we had − 2018, ’19, ’20, and even ’21 when I left − it would have made more sense to try and keep that group together. It would have been a special group to keep playing for."

Of course, it never happened and instead the ownership of the A's decided to get rid of everyone around the ballclub.

Third-base coach Ron Washington and Matt Olson, both now members of the Atlanta Braves, also dropped the hammer.

"It’s (expletive) up, no doubt about it," Washington said. "The toughest thing is for the fans."

Washington believes "that team was the (expletive)--now, look at it. They have to rebuild that team and start over."

Olson thinks that keeping the operation up and ponying up money to keep stars in tow "sucks for them, it really does," when it comes to the ownership and the front office of the A's.

"I hope they stay in the Oakland Coliseum as long as they can," Washington said. "Just pay whatever you got to pay to stay there. That field is one of the best fields in baseball. It’s impeccable. If you didn’t know where you were going to after you left that damn field, you think you’re in a grand place."

Call me crazy, but if I was a bettor I'd be putting my money into Washington having donated a few dollars to the Oakland A's cause for keeping the team rooted in the Bay Area, with the Reverse Boycott scheduled for Tuesday's game against the Rays.

And hey, you should do something too before it's too late! And if you can't attend the game, well, at least go grab your smartphone and blast some tweets blaming the A's ownership for the precarious situation of the franchise these days. Las Vegas and Nevada residents will surely thank you.