The Oakland A’s are packing their bags.
The team has purchased a 49-acre plot of land in Southern Nevada, just west of the Las Vegas Strip, with the intention to build a ballpark there. The site, owned by Station Casinos parent company Red Rock Resorts, sits at Dean Martin Drive and Tropicana Avenue.
“We recognize that this is very hard to hear,” the A’s wrote in a statement. “We are disappointed that we have been unable to achieve our shared vision of a waterfront ballpark. As we shift our focus to Vegas, we will continue to share details about next steps.”
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said the league supports the move and looks forward “to them bringing finality to this process by the end of the year.”
Oakland mayor Sheng Thao said in a statement that she was “deeply disappointed” and that the city has “gone above and beyond” to find mutually beneficial terms and “made significant strides to close the deal” this year.
“It is clear to me that the A’s have no intention of staying in Oakland and have simply been using this process to try to extract a better deal out of Las Vegas,” Thao added.
Nevada governor Joe Lombardo called the development “exciting on many levels,” adding that he is in touch with the team, MLB, the Nevada legislature, and other stakeholders “as we continue to navigate this opportunity.”
The A’s lease at RingCentral Coliseum runs through the end of the 2024 season, and a new stadium is unlikely to be completed until 2027. It’s unclear where the team will play in 2025 and 2026.
