Though this move was announced months ago, it’s still a slight shock to the heart of any baseball fan to realize that the Oakland Athletics are no more, replaced temporarily by a bare-boned Athletics moniker until the move to Las Vegas.
The team didn’t really announce the dropping of Oakland formally, but a press release announcing the game times for the team’s 2025 campaign at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento omitted any use of a locale or Oakland Athletics name. The Sacramento River Cats (Triple-A; Pacific Coast League), sharing the ballpark with the A’s for at least three seasons until a new Las Vegas ballpark is completed, will have the exclusive use of Sacramento for now.
So this marks the end of the Oakland Athletics era in Major League Baseball. No, don’t hold your breath for a replacement in the Bay Area: as history and territorial rules teach us, once one team leaves a two-team market, you rarely see a replacement. (New York City is the most obvious exception after the National League returned to the market in the form of the Mets after the loss of the Giants and Dodgers.) The Athletics have called three markets home–Philadelphia, Kansas City and Oakland–and with the addition of West Sacramento, the Athletics will become the most-traveled team in MLB history. (The Braves, of course, have called three markets home–Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta.) A move to Las Vegas would cement the record.
The plans for Sutter Health Park appear to be in flux. The Athletics and MLB had previously announced plans to install synthetic turf at Sutter Health Park, to address the issue of wear and tear on grass with two professional teams playing there.
But after some deliberations and discussions with players, the decision was made to retain the grass field and eschew synthetic turf. Players overall aren’t thrilled with synthetic turf, and the increased field temperatures generated by synthetic turf–with retains heat at a much higher level than grass–presented concerns. Summertime temps in Sacramento regularly exceed 100 degrees, leading to the reevaluation of synthetic turf. From MLB.com:
“Based on feedback from players, as well as guidance from MLB’s long-time field expert, MLB, the A’s and Sutter Health Park have decided to maintain a natural grass field,” an MLB spokesperson said. “Our shared, primary concern is ensuring the best and safest playing surface for the A’s, River Cats, and visiting players.
“In light of the players’ clear preference for natural grass, and after weighing with the MLBPA the potential risks and benefits of maintaining natural grass versus replacing the playing surface with synthetic turf, all the parties are aligned in moving forward with a natural grass field for Opening Day 2025.”
Instead, the A’s will play 60 night games out of 81 home matches, according to a team press release. Eleven of the A’s 21 total day games will be played in April and May, with only six Sunday day games scheduled from June through August. The 60 home night games would tie the 1968 A’s for the most in a season in franchise history.
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