A’s fans’ ‘sell the team’ chants reach All-Star Game in Seattle originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
After holding a similar protest at Oakland Coliseum last month, Athletics fans brought their “sell the team” chants to T-Mobile Park in Seattle for the 2023 MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday night.
Fans organized to make their voices heard — literally — on one of baseball’s biggest stages, handing out cards in the stands as an effort to “keep baseball alive” in Oakland as the team plans a move to Las Vegas.
A’s fans did the same during a June 13 home win over the Tampa Bay Rays, planning a “reverse boycott” that coincidentally took place the same day the Nevada State Legislature passed a funding bill for the team’s new Las Vegas stadium.
Chants came during Tuesday’s All-Star Game when Oakland representative Brent Rooker stepped into the box — and he heard them as he hit a ground-rule double into the stands in the sixth inning.
“I don’t know if it’s a large presence of Oakland fans here or if fans across the league share that sentiment. I did notice that, yeah,” Rooker told reporters in Seattle (h/t San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea). Continuously throughout the year, no matter what side of the aisle you stand on, Oakland fans have made it very clear how passionate they are about their team and city, and I think that in and of itself, in a vacuum, is pretty special. “
The A’s still have plenty of work to do before they move the franchise, although MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday that the team has begun the relocation application process.