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Kaval: A’s to Focus on Coliseum Experience

Coliseum City, Oakland

Though a new ballpark is a top priority for the team, Oakland A’s president Dave Kaval says he wants to improve the fan experience at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

A 50-year-old facility, the Coliseum does not draw rave reviews when it comes to the experience for both fans and players. The A’s are still in the process of trying to replace the Coliseum, and are searching around Oakland for a site for a new ballpark.

One of the key people behind that effort is Kaval, who was just recently appointed to the president title to replace Mike Crowley. Kaval says that in order for the A’s to improve revenue, a new ballpark is a must, but he wants to find ways in the interim to improve the fan experience at the Coliseum. More from the San Francisco Chronicle:

Kaval said every dollar of revenue generated will go to “the on-field product and the fan experience.” He wouldn’t say how the dollars would be divided but suggested it’ll be about balancing the needs.

“We’re 100 percent focused on reinvesting all the revenues that we have on the Coliseum as well as the on-field product and making sure we can be as good as we can, getting the resources necessary to Billy (Beane) and the team to be successful,” Kaval said on a conference call.

“And we’re going to be real smart about generating more revenue. We see that as a way to deal with the transitional period before we get a new stadium.”

There have been signs of the A’s ballpark search intensifying in recent weeks. Kaval received his position as part of a major front office shakeup that saw Lew Wolff step down as managing partner and sell the bulk of his shares to John Fisher. In addition, the new collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball and the Players Association calls for the A’s to be phased off of revenue sharing over the next several years.

Obviously the end goal for the A’s is still a new ballpark, but getting more fans to the Coliseum will be key in the meantime.

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