Bay Area A’s fans don’t begrudge Las Vegas; they aim their ire at owner

OAKLAND, Calif. — Supporters of the Oakland A’s, many of them with decades of supporting the only baseball franchise they’ve known, started the short trek from the Oakland Coliseum to nearby Last Dive Bar.

It was a somber feeling knowing they’d never be back inside the stadium cheering for their beloved Green and Yellow who had played their final home game in Oakland on Thursday afternoon.

The fans were heading to a “wake” for the A’s, an opportunity to mourn together while still processing the day they had long dreaded:

The team was starting its relocation to Las Vegas and a $1.5 billion stadium on the Strip.

The bar’s decorations included a gravestone featuring a dead cartoon possum, referencing the invading animals that called the outdated Oakland Coliseum home.

“We’ve done nothing wrong but love this team, love this culture,” Bryan Johansen, a longtime fan who helped organize the wake, told supporters at the packed bar.

If anyone can prepare Las Vegans on what to expect with the franchise, it’s the people in Oakland. They expressed their disappointment in owner John Fisher for asking for too much public money for a stadium and for annually having one of the lowest payrolls in baseball.

The franchise has said that would change in 2028 when the A’s move to Las Vegas is scheduled to take place.

“You want to make money, you have to spend money,” A’s fan Marcia Partch said.

Jack Markham, at the same table as Partch, added: “Why is it going to be different in Vegas?”

When the team decided on its future home, many in the Bay Area thought it was using Las Vegas as leverage to get a better deal for a proposed multibillion-dollar waterfront stadium district to rehome the team in Oakland.

But just like football’s Raiders, team officials decided the best deal was in Las Vegas.

The Nevada Legislature approved $385 million in public funding to help lure the franchise to Las Vegas; the stadium is expectedbe ready for the 2028 season.

“Very excited for the opportunity in Vegas,” Fisher said when the relocation was approved last year by Major League Baseball. “The fans there are terrific. The success of the Raiders and the Golden Knights, as well as our Triple-A team, the Aviators, has shown just how successful professional sports can be in that market.”

Fisher has repeatedly expressed his remorse for relocating the team, but those comments have been met by much pushback from the fans in the Bay Area. They chanted “sell the team” following Thursday’s game, a 3-2 win against the Texas Rangers. Other fans used profanity.

“They pitted us against Las Vegas,” said Joel Carrillo, a fan attending the wake. “They used two cities … to outbid each other, and Las Vegas won. So, my advice is don’t trust this ownership group.”

The eventual death of the waterfront site was especially difficult for Line 51 Brewing Company owner PT Lovern, whose bar would have been a quick walk from the new stadium.

“My family put a bunch of time and money, paid higher rents, to open this place up so that it would be this full 82 times a year,” said Lovern, who emphasized that he knew the new stadium wasn’t guaranteed. “When they decided that plan was just fictional or whatever, they were really toying with people’s lives.”

Lovern said the ownership’s lack of investment in the roster directly affected how fans interacted with the team. Why buy your kid a star player’s jersey, he asked, if they’ll likely be shipped off in a couple years?

“Maybe their philosophy will change when they move to Vegas, but it’s been pretty obvious they’ve been doing just the minimum to stay relevant enough,” Lovern said. “Hopefully, they’ll look through a clear lens and … put a competitive team on the field.”

While Las Vegas prepares for its professional baseball team, Oaklanders are left in a strange limbo. With the now-Las Vegas Raiders and Golden State Warriors also gone, professional sports have completely left the city.

Carrillo said his support for the Athletics, and Major League Baseball overall, was over.

“My first game I came to was in ’83 and it’s just not going to be a thing for me,” he said. “I don’t care about the franchise anymore. Vegas can do with the A’s what they want. If there’s fans there, awesome. If not, that’s great too. I’m indifferent at this point.”