A Familiar Pattern (Or, "Method To The Madness")

For those that haven't kept up with recent sports events, allow me to explain the latest news out of Major League Baseball. 

On June 21, the Oakland Athletics officially announced their intent to move to Las Vegas, and begin play at a new stadium no sooner than 2025. If the club's application for relocation is approved, this will end a rich history of baseball in Oakland, one that dates back to at least 1968 (1).

Frankly speaking, this franchise relocation game has been played before. We saw it happen in 2004, as the Montreal Expos became the Washington Nationals. The original Cleveland Browns of the NFL high-tailed it to Baltimore in 1996. And in the NHL, the Hartford Whalers moved to North Carolina just a year after Art Modell left Cleveland without a pro football team (2, 3, 4). 

That being said, there seems to be somewhat of a method to the madness, so to speak. What we're seeing with the A's follows the same pattern as the other three cited cases. 

First, the franchise is totally gutted of star players and assets. The Expos, for example, traded players such as John Wetteland and Marquis Grissom for practically nothing in return. In Oakland's case, key talents like Starling Marte and Mike Fiers have been allowed to depart via free agency or trades. 

Second, the owner of the team talks negatively about the club, saying that it cannot operate under present circumstances. The narrative usually goes something like this: "a new stadium is necessary for us to be able to compete on a championship level". For the A's, the line delivered by owner John Fisher has been "future success...depends on a new ballpark" (5).   

The third step in the process is to reject all reasonable offers for a new stadium in the current market, and subsequently announce that negotiations have failed. 

In the case of the Whalers, owner Peter Karmanos was offered a brand new arena (to the tune of one hundred forty-seven point five million dollars) by the State of Connecticut. This proposal was turned down, with Karmanos demanding an additional forty-five million dollars "to cover losses". We have seen the same thing happen in Oakland; multiple different stadium options have been offered to the A's, ownership rejecting each one. 

Step four involves the formal announcement of the team's departure. The front office will profess to have done everything possible to remain in the current market; in reality, nothing is further from the truth. 

For Cleveland, this took the form of Art Modell ruling out any reconsideration of a move. Modell publicly stated that there was no way to keep the Browns from relocating;

"The bridge is down, burned, disappeared; there's not even a canoe there". 

Fifth, parties not involved in direct ownership of the franchise look for relief. They ask the sports league in question to block relocation efforts, but their pleas fall on deaf ears, as they did with the Expos. 

In the A's case, fans have been chanting "sell the team" for months on end. This chorus has moved beyond Oakland, and is now beginning to surface in other MLB cities. Yet to this point, the Fisher-Dave Kaval partnership that runs the team has maintained radio silence in response. 

Now we arrive at the endgame; the ninth inning; the final step in the relocation saga. All efforts to save the franchise having failed, the team opens its new (and frequently taxpayer funded) stadium to much fanfare and hoopla. 

The Nationals win the World Series; the Carolina Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup, and the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl. Yet in the wake of success, communities are abandoned, dreams destroyed, and legacies made to be nothing but memories. This is the road that the Athletics are traveling. 

There are those that say the A's move to Vegas is inevitable, and simply should be accepted by Oakland's fans. These critics likely have never had to experience actually losing a major professional team. I have first-hand knowledge of the feelings involved; the end of the Whalers saddened me, as Peter Karmanos broke my heart. Try as I might, I can never forgive him for that.

And now, talk of relocation is spreading, as the Milwaukee Brewers are rumored to be exploring options for a move. There should be no doubt; if this can happen in Oakland and Milwaukee, it can happen in any other MLB market as well. 

Your team may be next; that's as good of a reason as any to say...

...SELL THE TEAM!!!

Sources:

1. “Oakland Athletics Relocation to Las Vegas.” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_Athletics_relocation_to_Las_Vegas#Post-agreement_and_approval. Accessed 15 Aug. 2023.

2. "Montreal Expos." Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal_Expos. Accessed 15 Aug. 2023.

3. "Cleveland Browns Relocation Controversy."

Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Browns_relocation_controversy. Accessed 15 Aug. 2023.

4. "Hartford Whalers." Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartford_Whalers. Accessed 15 Aug. 2023.

5. Kalland, Robby. “The Oakland A's Will Look At Moving To A New City If Their Waterfront Ballpark Plans Aren’t Approved.” UPROXX, 11 May 2021, uproxx.com/sports/oakland-athletics-waterfront-ballpark-plans-howard-terminal-relocate-vegas. Accessed 15 Aug. 2023.