There will be a new mayor in Oakland and a new governor in Nevada.
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher may be hoping that Oakland approves a plan of building a stadium-village on the waterfront before the end of the year or the two might have to start all over with a new mayor. Fisher might have a better chance of getting money from Nevada in his attempt at landing a Las Vegas stadium as there will be a new Nevada governor in 2023. Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf was term limited. In Nevada, Joe Lombardo will be sworn in as the new governor. All of this means Fisher still has a chance to get a stadium deal done in Oakland or in Nevada before the end of the year but that might be a very big stretch. Just a couple of weeks ago, Manfred said he did not see much hope that Fisher’s business can stay in Oakland much longer. But then the Nevada governor Steve Sisolak might have dampened Manfred Las Vegas enthusiasm by saying there would be no public money for a stadium. Sisolak will not be at the negotiating table much longer.
Oakland has been a Major League Baseball problem since 1967 when the American League gave Kansas City Athletics owner Charles O. Finley permission to move to Oakland and create a two-team market with San Francisco. In 1980, A’s owner Finley agreed in principle to sell the team to Marvin Davis, who planned to move the Athletics to Denver. Oakland and Alameda County blocked the deal. Various owners have tried to get a new Oakland or Fremont or San Jose Athletics stadium built and have failed. San Jose was a problem as the San Francisco Giants owners controlled the territory even though voters in the city said no to a Giants stadium. The 2022 election could have a significant impact on MLB.
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Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com