Relocation?

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 Written By: Matt Ferreira

Image via Lachlan Cunningham/ Getty Images



 This morning, Jeff Passan reported that the Oakland Athletics would be exploring relocation possibilities after Major League Baseball suggested a possible move. 



 The Oakland Athletics have been working with the city of Oakland to create a new waterfront stadium, called Howard Terminal Stadium, to stay in Oakland. Their current ballpark, RingCentral Coliseum, was built in 1966, and was originally built as a baseball and football stadium for the Oakland Raiders and Athletics. The ballpark has not aged well, and the Oakland Raiders eventually moved out in 2019 to Las Vegas, leaving the Athletics to take care of the park.


 Major League Baseball released a statement via the Athletics twitter account regarding the situation.



 While it is still possible to be in Oakland there are many interesting places in which the Athletics could possibly move to. 


 Las Vegas- Being close to Oakland it would most likely keep the A’s in the AL West and would be the easiest move out of all the locations. With teams like the Raiders and Golden Knights, Vegas has proven they are able to hold a professional sports team. Geographically it would be fairly easy for current A’s fans to see their team as well.


 Portland, OR- Once again being close to home this could be an interesting move. It would not only create more baseball fans in the Oregon area, it would also create a new rivalry between the Mariners and A’s that could be good for baseball. 


 Montreal- Many fans have called for a return of the Expos (including myself) 

ever since they moved to Washington D.C. and became the Nationals in 2005. Last year the Tampa Bay Rays talked about spending half their year in Quebec’s capital before the borders closed due to the pandemic. Jarry Park Stadium, formerly home of the Expos, is still standing and could be home to the newly relocated team until they create a new one.


 Nashville- One of upcoming cities in the United States, Nashville is a very interesting choice. Home to one of the top collegiate baseball programs in Vanderbilt, a professional baseball team would be interesting to have in the area. Already holding one professional sports team in the Nashville Predators, another major sports team moving into the area could be beneficial to the city. Tennessee has seen a major rise in baseball interest in recent years due to the rise of the Commodores program, and more and more stars are coming out of the state such as Mookie Betts. 


Once again there is still hope for the Athletics to stay in Oakland, but if the city wants any professional sports team in the area they better get moving on building a new stadium. The city has seen two of its three sports teams move in recent years even after the Raiders and Warriors recent success. It will be very interesting to see how Oakland, the Athletics, and Major League Baseball handle this situation moving forward. 



Location: Boston, MA, USA

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