The Oakland A’s were killed by greed. Do not allow the people responsible for this to spin it any other way. John Fisher did not have to move this team. Major League Baseball and its owners did not need to be complicit in it. This was a choice. A wrong one. History will sneer.
A’s attendance in final game ever in cities it has abandoned: Philadelphia, 1954, vs. Yankees: 1,715; Kansas City, 1967, vs. White Sox: 5,325; Oakland, 2024, vs. Rangers: 46,889. Notice anything that stands out, Rob Manfred?
Largest Crowds for a Final Home Game in a City:
46,889 Oakland A's, 9/26/24
31,395 Montreal Expos, 9/29/04
14,460 Washington Senators, 9/30/71
12,577 Milwaukee Braves, 9/22/65
11,606 New York Giants, 9/29/57
This is a powerful photo of A's head groundskeeper Clay Wood being consoled as he prepares the field at the Oakland Coliseum one last time.
This was Clay's 31st and final season with the club. Hundreds of others will lose their jobs.
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
People who spent 40 years working at the Coliseum were told MONDAY they won’t get severance or health insurance after being laid off tomorrow. “They have asked the A's to assist them in their negotiations with Aramark, but that those requests have been unsuccessful.” FJF
The images from the Coliseum right now are heartbreaking. Can't even imagine what tomorrow will be like. A travesty that one inept owner can ruin baseball for an entire city.
I sat down with the great Michael Zagaris, the excellent A's/49ers team photographer, and he was typically colorful and candid when addressing the A's, his days at the Coliseum, Rickey, Jose and, of course, John Fisher: sfchronicle.com/sports/athle… via @sfchronicle@Athletics@49ers
I reached out to Wally Haas from the @Athletics Haas ownership to disuss the A's relocation, and he called John Fisher's decision to pull the team out of Oakland “frankly unforgivable,” “hard to watch” and “indefensible.”
The full story: sfchronicle.com/sports/athle… via @sfchronicle
I reached out to Wally Haas from the @Athletics Haas ownership to disuss the A's relocation, and he called John Fisher's decision to pull the team out of Oakland “frankly unforgivable,” “hard to watch” and “indefensible.”
The full story: sfchronicle.com/sports/athle… via @sfchronicle
A’s were the better team. Scoreboard:
A’s 4,597-4,364, .513 winning percentage
Giants 4,569-4,398, .510 (since 1968)
A’s won 4 World Series, 17 divisions, 21 playoff appearances
Giants 3, 9, 13
A’s edge in interleague 75-71, Bay Bridge exhibitions 51-45-2, World Series 4-0
Sunday baseball column: With final Bay Area series here, we salute A’s fans who protested at Coliseum and those who protested by avoiding Coliseum, and Giants fans who supported A’s fans, rooting for region with two healthy, vibrant teams: sfchronicle.com/sports/athle… via @sfchronicle