A’s reportedly find temporary home

It looks as though the Oakland Athletics will have a pitstop in Sacramento before heading to Las Vegas in 2028.

Dave Weiglein, FKA Carmichael Dave, a radio host in Sacramento, reported on Wednesday night that “The Oakland A’s and Sacramento are finalizing an agreement to play temporarily in the capital city beginning next season. There will likely be an official announcement as soon as tomorrow or Friday.”

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle wasn’t quite as certain in her reporting but shared similar news. “A’s source has not heard anything definitive but Sacramento move for next three years ‘sure looks that way.'”

Assuming this deal does go through, questions still loom. One is, what will the rest of the season be like in Oakland? It’s hard to predict. But tension was already high during the season-opening homestand, which lasted seven games.

Opening Night against the Cleveland Guardians featured a fan protest outside of the stadium. That game drew an announced crowd of 13,522. The next highest announced attendance total in the seven-game homestand was 6,618, while the combined announced attendance over the seven games was 45,068. This was despite playing three games against the Boston Red Sox, normally one of the top-drawing opponents in Oakland.

Another question is, what will things be like in Sacramento? There are logistical questions. Carmichael Dave detailed three. How long will the temporary agreement in Sacramento be, will there be any outs in the lease and will the team keep its name?

In Sacramento, the A’s would play at Sutter Health Park, the current venue for the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants since 2015 (and the A’s from 2000-2014). Including lawn seating and standing room only, Sutter Health Park can presently hold roughly 14,000 people. There is also a matter of a television deal that would need to be figured out.

Beyond that, the tension that has existed in Oakland for the early part of 2024 and recent seasons as the move to Vegas has become more likely will not necessarily go away. A lot of A’s fans already live in the Sacramento area and likely have the same frustrations toward John Fisher and the rest of the front office that the fans in Oakland have. Additionally, as Oakland and West Sacramento (where Sutter Health Park is) are roughly an hour apart. It’s not likely that the protests will vanish.

As has been the case with much of the team’s move — or potential move — to Vegas, this decision creates nearly as many questions as it answers.

[Carmichael Dave on Twitter/X, Susan Slusser on Twitter/X]