The Athletics made major progress in their push for a new Las Vegas stadium this week, but there are still many hurdles to clear before packing their bags for Sin City.
One of those includes finding a temporary home from when their current lease at the Oakland Coliseum expires after the 2024 MLB season up until the projected 2028 opening of their new Vegas ballpark.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred on Thursday was asked if there’s a preference for the A’s to get out of their lease in 2024 and try to play where the team’s Triple-A affiliate is located.
“No decision has been made on that,” Manfred replied.
Las Vegas Ballpark, which has a capacity of 10,000, is home to the Las Vegas Aviators and located about 16 miles northwest of where the A’s potential new stadium would be built on nine acres at the Tropicana site.
The A’s have called the Coliseum and Oakland home for 55 years.
Manfred said his last visit to the Coliseum was at some point last year for a player meeting. He shared his impression of the ballpark.
“The ballpark’s not in good shape,” he said. “The ballpark’s not a major league facility. I’ve said it repeatedly. I think particularly I met down in the room kind of in the bowels of the stadium. You go down to the bowels of the stadium where the clubhouses are — it’s not a major league facility.”
Manfred added that players have expressed their concerns about playing in an environment like the Coliseum.
If the A’s leave Oakland and don’t share the ballpark with their Triple-A affiliate, where else could they go?
Sacramento mayor Darrell Steinberg discussed the possibility of temporarily housing the A’s in the future.
“Maybe — just maybe — some of the kinds of conversation that you’re just describing — maybe — they are happening and have happened,” Steinberg said on Sactown Sports 1140 last month. “I can’t confirm or deny . But just maybe they are happening.”
Whether it’s Oakland, Vegas, Sacramento or elsewhere — it’s clear the A’s have lots to figure out before the move becomes official.