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January 15, 2005
A's sale sparks move rumors
With Oakland A's stadium consultant (and billionaire real estate tycoon) Lew Wolff on the verge of purchasing the team, speculation has been spreading like eucalyptus-fueled wildfire that this is the first step toward the team relocating to San Jose. One small problem: San Jose is in Santa Clara County, which, according to baseball bylaws, is officially the territory of the San Francisco Giants.
While MLB commissioner Bud Selig would no doubt be happy to see Wolff use the threat of a move to bludgeon Oakland into building a new stadium, he also doesn't sound eager to unleash the can of worms that would result from an attempt to put the A's in Giants territory. Asked by the San Jose Mercury News if the Giants could be compensated for their territorial rights, Selig replied: "I'm not getting into that because we don't change territories." Except, presumably, for that time in the early 1990s when the Giants were granted rights to Santa Clara in the first place.
Oh, yes, that was quite a racket, wasn't it? I can only wonder what would happen if the A's owner were named Al Davis...
Posted by rone on January 15, 2005 11:12 PM
Any word on a stadium for the San Jose Earthquakes ?
Posted by Bertell Ollman on January 18, 2005 03:17 PM
Oakland should build a downtown baseball stadium near Jack London Square, not San Jose.
Posted by Dan Cruz on January 18, 2005 04:53 PM