MLB Gives The A's Their Blessings to Leave Oakland

The Oakland A's might soon be on the move. Major League Baseball has given the team its blessing to leave Oakland given the city council's stalling on approving a new ballpark on Howard Terminal.

The A's, baseball vagabonds which has taken them from Philadelphia to Kansas City to Oakland, have played in the Oakland Alameda-County Coliseum (these days known as RingCentral Coliseum) since 1968 and have long wished to vacate. Given how raw sewage rears its ugly and smelly head during rain delays it is not safe place to play baseball or any other activity.

I'm not unsympathetic to Oakland's concerns about the use of public money to finance a private facility and there is significant opposition in the community to the construction of the new stadium. Given these circumstances I believe the A's will leave Oakland by the end of the 2024 season when their current lease at RingCentral Coliseum expires - if not sooner.

Frankly, I would very shocked if the Howard Terminal Project ever got off the ground. Even if the A's won the World Series this year I think their days in Oakland are numbered. After all, the Golden State Warriors were the best team in the NBA for several years and that didn't stop them from leaving Oakland in 2019 to return to San Francisco.

The NFL's Oakland Raiders made their way to Las Vegas last year. Chances are this is where the A's will end up. Aside from the Raiders, the Las Vegas Golden Knights expanded into the NHL in 2017. How far behind can a MLB franchise be? 

Of course, there are other possibilities. Portland, Oregon and Vancouver would keep the A's in the AL West but this might not make the Seattle Mariners too happy. MLB could opt to expand down here in the South in Nashville or Charlotte. But that would involve realignment. I don't think the A's would move to Montreal. The Tampa Bay Rays are a more likely and logical candidate for that if MLB grants Montreal a new Expos franchise.

This is the A's 54th season in Oakland - the same number of years they spent in Philadelphia under Connie Mack. While in Oakland, the A's have won six AL pennants and four World Series titles including three consecutive championships between 1972-1974 and have inspired some very loyal, passionate fans who move Heaven and Earth or at least navigate I-880 and the BART to get from Point A to Point A's. There could be more championships as the A's currently sit atop the AL West. But, win or lose, all things must pass.