2025 MLB Thread

[gehringer_2]

2 hours ago, 1776 said:

Thank you for posting this. Very good update on the Fisher debacle. Manfred being complicit in this failed scheme is shameful. At least Stu Sternberg knew when the ruse was up. I can’t believe, according to this piece, that the A’s are valued the same as the Orioles were when they were for sale. 

Selling the team seems to be the only end game

[Hongbit]

I would love to know more on the decision to not refer to themselves as the Sacramento A’s in the interim.    Is this an MLB mandate based on something in their rules or is it 100% Fisher’s call?  Either way it’s a huge mistake.    

Sac could have been a very viable backup option if Vegas get too costly had he not screwed the fans over.    It’s a small market but there’s quite a bit of wealth and more than enough sports starved fans to fill seats.  It’s also close enough to Oakland to keep many of their core fans.    He would’ve made a ton of money on merchandise and local sponsors had he changed the name from the get go.  Instead, he’s got ads from Las Vegas tourism board on the wall of the power alleys as another slap in the face of Sacramento.    His best move may be to flip and embrace Sacramento by changing the name and see if he can make it a permanent home.  Maybe Vivek can buy in and give Fisher an influx of cash.  

Edited 19 hours ago by Hongbit

[1776]

This from our friend, AI.

During their time playing at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, the team will simply be known as the Athletics or the A's, with the approved designation for official references being "ATH". The A's vice chairman, Sandy Dean, explained that this decision was made out of respect, recognizing the temporary nature of their presence in Sacramento. The team's brand guidelines specify that the city name will not be used on the front of team jerseys. 

While some Sacramento residents may find the decision not to incorporate the city name into the team's branding disrespectful, the intention is to avoid establishing a strong connection to Sacramento that would be severed upon the team's eventual move to Las Vegas. 
                       ***********
 

The most encouraging takeaway from the link Bert provided is that there is a growing realization that Las Vegas may not be happening. I agree with all A’s fans, SELL THE TEAM!!!

[IdahoBert]

3 hours ago, lordstanley said:

And going back even farther, the Yankees have lost 15 of 21. They were 42-25 on June 12th, now they're 48-40.

That is phenomenally bad. 

[CMRivdogs]

We drove past the A’s “stadium” construction site about 18 months or so ago. They hadn’t started doing anything with the hotel-casino there yet. It felt too small an area for one with no viable parking. I kind of get Vegas as a viable market but there seems to be a lot of competition for the tourist dollar there.

The minor league team/stadium is too far out and too small to be viable with little room for expansion. 
 

The A’s are in the same boat as the Rays. Sell the team and hope someone smarter can make the necessary changes. 

[chasfh]

10 hours ago, papalawrence said:

Santander is having a Chris Davis bad year.

Anthony Santander Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More | Baseball-Reference.com https://share.google/lgQf3Z59E3uzFUhzY

Good thing there was never a chance we were going to sign him. That would have been an Avila move.

[chasfh]

6 hours ago, IdahoBert said:

The hubris of these guys who are used to getting their own way all the time sometimes comes up against reality as an immovable object.

He created this problem by refusing to work with the city of Oakland. Now it looks like the Athletics could be an MLB team without an MLB city to call home.

You can’t just wave a wand and make a stadium appear out of a 3-D printer. It’s not a video game.

Related to this, I really really hate looking up stats on Reference and seeing ATH instead of OAK.

[gehringer_2]

2 hours ago, CMRivdogs said:

We drove past the A’s “stadium” construction site about 18 months or so ago. They hadn’t started doing anything with the hotel-casino there yet. It felt too small an area for one with no viable parking. I kind of get Vegas as a viable market but there seems to be a lot of competition for the tourist dollar there.

The minor league team/stadium is too far out and too small to be viable with little room for expansion. 
 

The A’s are in the same boat as the Rays. Sell the team and hope someone smarter can make the necessary changes. 

Target sits on 8 acres in Minneapolis, but the only reason that works is because very close along the one side is the commuter rail line so everyone who goes that way just gets a on a train  - there doesn't need to be any other infrastructure  on that entire side, and of course that also hugely cuts the need for parking. I can't imagine how you could make 9 acres work in Vegas.

Edited 14 hours ago by gehringer_2

[VegasTiger]

6 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

Target sits on 8 acres in Minneapolis, but the only reason that works is because very close along the one side is the commuter rail line so everyone who goes that way just gets a on a train  - there doesn't need to be any other infrastructure  on that entire side, and of course that also hugely cuts the need for parking. I can't imagine how you could make 9 acres work in Vegas.

The other three corners have large parking garages.

[papalawrence]

2 hours ago, VegasTiger said:

The other three corners have large parking garages.

Yep, Minneapolis has a very good light rail system - that was the brainchild of then Governor Jesse Ventura 25 years ago.

Minneapolis does also have a boatload of parking garages within 6 blocks of the field. All of the government buildings are right there. I used to be able to walk from work. Target is a nice field 

[gehringer_2]

2 hours ago, papalawrence said:

Yep, Minneapolis has a very good light rail system - that was the brainchild of then Governor Jesse Ventura 25 years ago.

Minneapolis does also have a boatload of parking garages within 6 blocks of the field. All of the government buildings are right there. I used to be able to walk from work. Target is a nice field 

Plus you have who knows how many thousand parking spaces at Mall of America right on the rail line. That's what worked best for us.

[papalawrence]

1 hour ago, gehringer_2 said:

Plus you have who knows how many thousand parking spaces at Mall of America right on the rail line. That's what worked best for us.

And they are planning more lines to the suburbs into the city. A lot of people were upset with Ventura when he pushed for this, but it's definitely a convenient mode of transportation 

[gehringer_2]

17 minutes ago, papalawrence said:

And they are planning more lines to the suburbs into the city. A lot of people were upset with Ventura when he pushed for this, but it's definitely a convenient mode of transportation 

I remember U Minn being a real PITA, fighting the expansion on the north side of the river. I thought it was a really bad look for what should be a progressive institution. It was basically an extortion play for a bigger payoff.