MLB made San Jose an offer it couldn’t refuse in a request to delay a fall referendum on the proposal to bring the A’s to the city; we’re told more than likely the city will honor the request. Smart move. UPDATE: Yup, Mayor Chuck Reed just announced the referendum will be scrapped.
MLB made San Jose an offer it couldn’t refuse in a request to delay a fall referendum on the proposal to bring the A’s to the city; we’re told more than likely the city will honor the request.
That’s a smart move. San Jose and Oakland A’s owner Lew Wolff went right up to the line in criticizing MLB Commissioner Bud Selig for moving too slowly on the A’s ballpark issue. They were right — by the time all is said and done, a committee appointed by Selig to resolve the issue will probably have met for over 20 months — but if you’re gonna poke a stick in the bee’s nest, you had best have a plan in mind. San Jose and Wolff got the attention of Selig; that’s enough for the time being.
For Selig, the politics of this situation are probably pretty uncomfortable; the San Francisco Giants are reportedly digging in the trenches in opposition to any move by the A’s to San Jose, and Oakland is quietly working on putting together a land parcel next to Jack London Square in downtown Oakland. We’re not entirely sure Wolff would pay for a new Oakland ballpark; the economics of Oakland are simply less compelling than the economics of San Jose, which is why the Giants are working so hard to keep the territory.
RELATED STORIES: MLB asks San Jose to put off ballpark referendum; San Jose to move forward with ballpark referendum; Selig “disappointed”; Bud to Wolff, San Jose: I’ll decide when I’m good and ready; Wolff, San Jose leaders say deadline is looming if A’s are to move; Whew! Selig says contraction not on the table; Parsing the impact of a new A’s ballpark; NUMMI plant pops up again as A’s ballpark site; Fremont comes back to A’s, MLB with another ballpark site; Wolff: A’s could share ballpark with MLS’s Quakes; Does a San Jose A&’s ballpark make economic sense?; Giants digging in their heels in opposition to A’s San Jose ballpark; San Jose to put off ballpark referendum until 2010; San Jose ballpark committee meets for first time; San Jose to discuss blueprints for A’s ballpark negotiations; Various San Jose groups begin task of landing A’s; Selig forms committee to study Oakland ballpark situation; Wolff to Oakland: Drop dead!; Oakland forming new committee to pursue new A’s ballpark; San Jose mayor: We have better than 50-50 shot at landing the A’s; San Jose city committee wants to see poll of residents before moving forward on A’s; Could Oakland Coliseum work as baseball-only venue?; Wolff: Goal is team in “Northern California”; A’s officially drop Fremont ballpark plans; Wolff says there’s no backup plan; A’s suspend Fremont plans; will reevaluate future home for club; A’s: No new ballpark until 2014; Wolff: A’s still committed to Fremont ballpark; A’s cancel community meetings as opposition to new ballpark plan accelerates; New A’s ballpark opposed by hundreds of protesters; Oakland admits original plans for Cisco Field are all but dead
Share your news with the baseball community. Send it to us at editors@augustpublications.com.
Subscribers to the weekly Ballpark Digest newsletter see features before they’re posted to the site. You can sign up for a free subscription at the Newsletter Signup Page.
Join Ballpark Digest on Facebook and on Twitter!