Since the Oakland A’s attempts to move to San Jose have long since reached terminal stasis, all we have to report on these days are crazy rumors. And on the crazy-rumor scale, this one is not-all-that-crazy:
Sam Liccardo, the San Jose City Council member whose district includes most of the proposed downtown ballpark property, wants the city to sue the Giants. They continue to claim territorial rights to the South Bay and, empowered by Major League Baseball’s antitrust exemption, have used that claim to block the A’s quest at every turn.
By “not all that crazy,” I mean of course that it could actually happen, not that it has much of a chance in hell of achieving anything. The San Jose Mercury News’ Mark Purdy writes that it “could be a game-changer” and “a cunning reverse twist on the Giants’ own veiled (and nonveiled) threats to pursue legal action against San Jose and other entities if the A’s are allowed to move south,” but even if San Jose decides to sue the Giants — which would really mean challenging MLB’s territorial rights agreement, which would mean going up against the very league that they’re trying to lure to town — it’s hard to see where they’d have legal standing, given that the Giants aren’t technically blocking anything right now, since MLB hasn’t decided whether or on what grounds to consider allowing the A’s to move. (And likely never will, at least not until the Giants and A’s owners work out something that will satisfy both of them, which will never happen.)
If you still doubt me, remember that San Jose previously agreed not to even hold a public vote on whether to build a stadium until after MLB made its ruling, for fear of angering their potential baseball partners. Also, that Mark Purdy was spreading crazy rumors then, too.
Purdy was up against a deadline and needed a column lol…. In the past 6 months the giants public position on the A’s to SJ of basically “over our dead body” has changed to “the decision is up to MLB and we agree that the A’s need a new stadium”.
So seems like the sides are trying to get something done… maybe it will take another 4 years lol..
Why are they so tied to staying the Bay Area? They’ve already danced across the country, they should move to Las Vegas, and start the trek back east. San Antonio could be the next stop. Are there any decent markets left? Charlotte A’s? Portland used to be at the top of everyone’s relocation lists, but they like soccer now, so I don’t see it happening. San Antonio, maybe, because they only have AA at the moment. San Juan would have potential, although it’s a pretty poor city and island. If the statehood thing ever happens, it would probably change the game.
Geuy: Exactly. Purdy either hasn’t thought this through or really doesn’t get life in the real world (he did admit to paying $160 to take his kid to see a Venezuela-Korea WBC game, so the latter might be more likely).
The one thing the city of SJ could do to ensure it never gets an MLB team is to challenge MLB.
Same reason Chris Hansen won’t be suing the NBA, as some suggest. Though Ballmer might be just crazy enough to do it… or at least threaten to do it in a major newspaper…
The Oakland Athletics are indeed going to move to San Jose!!!! That is if Lew Wolff can pay the San Francisco Giants around $100 million a year! Maybe more. The Giants want the pie! Lew Wolff easily has that kind of money. Therefore he’ll pay off the Giants. That’s how badly Lew Wolff wants to take the A’s to San Jose. It’s the money honey!!!