MLB commissioner says no plan to move Oakland A’s to Las Vegas
As rumors swirl that Las Vegas could add another professional sports franchise in the Oakland A’s, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred is saying not so fast.
In a meeting last week with Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, Manfred brought up Las Vegas as a possible future home for the A’s, but he said the comment was made in passing.
The comment was made in regard to a lawsuit filed by Oakland over the sale of land at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, where the NFL Raiders and A’s have played their home games.
The Raiders are moving to Las Vegas in 2020.
“In a recent meeting with the Mayor of Oakland, I did mention Las Vegas in the context of pointing out that the A’s might have to relocate if a new stadium can’t be built in Oakland,” Manfred told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Tuesday. “There is, however, no plan to move to Las Vegas.”
If the situation revolving around construction of a new waterfront stadium for the A’s in Oakland doesn’t work itself out and it becomes necessary to consider relocation, Manfred said not just Las Vegas would be in consideration.
“There will be a formal process that will consider all potential relocation sites,” he said.
The Raiders are relocating to Southern Nevada after similar struggles with Oakland to get a new stadium built.
With Las Vegas becoming the home of the NHL expansion team, the Golden Knights, in 2017 and the Raiders set to call an under-construction $2 billion, 65,000-capacity stadium home beginning next year, the city is a hot spot for pro sports rumors.
Recently, the Review-Journal reported that both Las Vegas and Henderson had entered into nondisclosure agreements to discuss the possible relocation of the Arizona Diamondbacks to Southern Nevada.
The A’s already have a Las Vegas tie. They are the parent ballclub of the Triple-A Aviators, who christened the new $150 million Las Vegas Ballpark this past season.
Representatives from Schaaf’s office, the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority and the A’s could not be immediately reached for comment.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.
