The Athletics are currently in the midst of baseball purgatory as they wait to relocate to Las Vegas, Nevada.
Formerly known as the Oakland Athletics from 1968, owner John Fisher announced his decision to move the storied MLB franchise to Nevada in 2023.
5
But with the expiration of their lease at the Oakland Coliseum in 2024, and the ‘New Las Vegas Stadium’ set to be completed by 2028, the A’s have temporarily moved to Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California. It is the home of the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, the Sacramento River Cats.
They will remain at the 14,000 capacity ball park until 2027.
The relocation to Vegas was a controversial one for a multitude of reasons, though many believe that the A’s ownership group, and Fisher in particular, stalled progress for a new stadium in Oakland in order to force a move elsewhere.
This comes despite Fisher admitting in a letter addressed to the A’s fans in 2024 that the ownership group exhausted all options to try and remain in Oakland.
“I know there is great disappointment, even bitterness,” Fisher said. “Though I wish I could speak to each one of you individually, I can tell you this from the heart: we tried. Staying in Oakland was our goal, it was our mission, and we failed to achieve it. And for that I am genuinely sorry”.
Furthermore, there was a contentious debate surrounding the use of $380 million in public funding for a privately-owned baseball team.
But, one fan in particular feels betrayed by the team’s relocation and has admitted he can’t even support the team any longer.
Carl Moren, one of the co-founders of the Last Dive Bar in Oakland, said: “For as long as I understood what was going on, we went to A’s, Warriors, and Raiders games. I’m not a fan of the team anymore. I don’t care what they do on the field. There’s no wrong way to deal with this as a fan. It’s like losing a loved one—there’s no wrong way to grieve.”
Nonetheless, the move is going ahead, and the new $1.5 billion ball park will be located in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip.
They will follow in the footsteps of the NFL team, the Las Vegas Raiders, who also made the switch from Oakland to Vegas back in 2020.
5
5
According to the most recent renderings, the A’s new home is expected to hold over 33,000 people.
Covering nine acres, the ballpark will have a fixed-roof with views of the Strip.
It is being constructed on the site of the former Tropicana Las Vegas, and its projected exterior drawing some comparisons to that of the Sydney Opera House in Australia.
To get the fans closer to the action, the A’s also released information stating that the stadium will have the closest seats to home plate, as well as the smallest foul territory of any MLB ballpark, offering a one-of-a-kind experience.
The A’s offering in Las Vegas is a far cry from what Athletics fans have been used to at the Coliseum, with numerous problems surrounding its structural issues, unsanitary conditions and field surface complaints.
Back in 2018, during an NFL game between the Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers, it was reported that a janitor on his walkie talkie had announced that he had found “two dead mice in the soda machine.”
5
Further back in 2013, there were reports of a drainage problem which caused raw sewage in the clubhouses of the home team, visitors and umpires, forcing the A’s and Seattle Mariners to share the clubhouse of the Raiders.
The deterioration of the Coliseum was notable, and in 2022, a letter of complaint was sent by former A’s president Dave Kaval to Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority CEO and executive director, Henry Gardner, addressing the concerns they had over the site.
This included the ballpark’s growing cat population, where the presence of “feces” had exponentially grown, while there were also “cobwebs” and a “significant uptick in moths.”
Other concerns addressed in the letter included:
- Seats being in disrepair, especially in sections behind home plate
- Plumbing leaks in clubhouse areas, the home batting cage, and arena offices, as well as in food and beverage stands
- Security intrusions, with one person having “stolen well over $1,000 of food and beverage items over the past month”
- Poor connectivity within the stadium
- Windows not being able to slide open in press box
- Aesthetics of stadium exterior with “dirt and weeds”
5
These concerns likely deterred fans from attending games.
In their last three seasons at their old home, the A’s ranked last in the MLB for average attendance per game, averaging between 9,000 and 11,500 spectators per game.
This is a trend that has since followed them to Sacramento, though, with the A’s currently averaging 9,722 fans in attendance in the 2025 season.
For context, they are just one of two teams averaging four-figure attendance numbers, joining the Tampa Bay Rays (9,840).
Through the first half of the 2025 season, the Athletics currently have a 33-51 losing record, which has them sitting at the bottom of the American League West division.
In fact, the A’s have the second-worst record in the entire American league, bettering only the Chicago White Sox (26-56 record).
With it looking like they will have the fewest attendance numbers for the fourth consecutive year, the move to Las Vegas in 2028 likely can’t come quick enough for the organization, with the expectation that they can become one of the biggest tourist hotspots once they arrive.
