A's/Giants to share AT&T Park next year?

[doublem23]

The San Francisco Chronicle floated the idea that MLB may support the move if the A's can't come to an agreement with the O.co Coliseum for next year...

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-bi...6881--mlb.html

Would also likely be the beginning of the end of American League baseball in the San Francisco Bay area.

[dickallen15]

What I don't understand is if the Giants are so opposed to the A's moving to San Jose, why would they be agreeable to sharing their park with them?

[Moses_Scurry]

Originally Posted by dickallen15

What I don't understand is if the Giants are so opposed to the A's moving to San Jose, why would they be agreeable to sharing their park with them?

Maybe they will stomach it for a year or two if it means the A's will in Indianapolis (or Charlotte, or Portland, or New Orleans, etc) after.

[TDog]

Originally Posted by dickallen15

What I don't understand is if the Giants are so opposed to the A's moving to San Jose, why would they be agreeable to sharing their park with them?

I don't believe the Giants would agree to the A's occupying their park while they're on the road. The Giants actually own their park, raised the money to build it on their own and still have debt service. But I've heard this suggestion floated a few times by fans who find the park in Oakland unacceptable, fans who would prefer watching baseball at the nice park across the bay.

The A's could do what the Giants did not so long ago and finance their own park, but that apparently is not part of the discussion. I don't see the A's playing in San Francisco unless the Giants were to charge the A's substantial rent and maintenance costs. Or the A's could bring baseball back to Candlestick Park.

During the debate over places to play for the Bay Area football teams, it might have been a newspaper columnist who suggested one park on Treasure Island, which can only be accessed by the Bay Bridge. I think the bridge, connecting San Francisco and Oakland, is the most heavily traveled in the country already, at least it's on the short list, so it's not uncommon to hear ridiculous ideas thrown out in NoCal.

[Hitmen77]

Originally Posted by doublem23

The San Francisco Chronicle floated the idea that MLB may support the move if the A's can't come to an agreement with the O.co Coliseum for next year...

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-bi...6881--mlb.html

Would also likely be the beginning of the end of American League baseball in the San Francisco Bay area.

Sounds like this is just an idea floated by a newspaper and is not under serious consideration.

As far as this being the beginning of the end of the A's in the Bay Area, I'm not so sure about that. As bad as O.co Coliseum is, I just have no idea where else the A's would go. I just don't think Vegas is a viable MLB market. Is there a viable city out there that is willing to pay for a new stadium to lure the A's?

Originally Posted by TDog

I don't believe the Giants would agree to the A's occupying their park while they're on the road. The Giants actually own their park, raised the money to build it on their own and still have debt service. But I've heard this suggestion floated a few times by fans who find the park in Oakland unacceptable, fans who would prefer watching baseball at the nice park across the bay.

The A's could do what the Giants did not so long ago and finance their own park, but that apparently is not part of the discussion. I don't see the A's playing in San Francisco unless the Giants were to charge the A's substantial rent and maintenance costs. Or the A's could bring baseball back to Candlestick Park.

During the debate over places to play for the Bay Area football teams, it might have been a newspaper columnist who suggested one park on Treasure Island, which can only be accessed by the Bay Bridge. I think the bridge, connecting San Francisco and Oakland, is the most heavily traveled in the country already, at least it's on the short list, so it's not uncommon to hear ridiculous ideas thrown out in NoCal.

Cisco Field is proposed to be privately financed. It's not the A's looking for public funding that's holding up the project, it's the issue of territorial rights in San Jose.

[DumpJerry]

Originally Posted by TDog

Or the A's could bring baseball back to Candlestick Park.

[cards press box]

Originally Posted by DumpJerry

Scary as that sounds to the great Al Bundy, wouldn't Candlestick -- yes Candlestick -- be an improvement over the mess that the Oakland Coliseum has become? The A's could play lots of day games to combat the cold weather at night, I suppose.

What MLB should really do is get the Giants to back off of their territorial rights to San Jose (which the A's gave them in the first place) so the A's can go there.

[blandman]

Originally Posted by cards press box

Scary as that sounds to the great Al Bundy, wouldn't Candlestick -- yes Candlestick -- be an improvement over the mess that the Oakland Coliseum has become? The A's could play lots of day games to combat the cold weather at night, I suppose.

What MLB should really do is get the Giants to back off of their territorial rights to San Jose (which the A's gave them in the first place) so the A's can go there.

As silly as it is for San Francisco to claim San Jose is there's when they both obviously share support in that area, moving the A's to San Jose is also silly and just a short term solution. The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams. An out of market move would be a much better solution.

[dickallen15]

Originally Posted by blandman

As silly as it is for San Francisco to claim San Jose is there's when they both obviously share support in that area, moving the A's to San Jose is also silly and just a short term solution. The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams. An out of market move would be a much better solution.

The Giants were 3rd in baseball in attendance. Oakland's situation is pretty bad, but they drew 1.8 million. I think there is plenty of interest.

[DSpivack]

Originally Posted by blandman

As silly as it is for San Francisco to claim San Jose is there's when they both obviously share support in that area, moving the A's to San Jose is also silly and just a short term solution. The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams. An out of market move would be a much better solution.

The Bay Area has 8 million people. They should easily be able to support two teams. Plus, there shouldn't be a lack of corporate support from Silicon Valley, if they move to San Jose.

The 49ers will be moving down there (Santa Clara, anyway) in, what, a year or two?

[Brian26]

Originally Posted by blandman

The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams.

Clearly, since it has only supported two teams for the past 46 years.

[TDog]

Originally Posted by blandman

As silly as it is for San Francisco to claim San Jose is there's when they both obviously share support in that area, moving the A's to San Jose is also silly and just a short term solution. The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams. An out of market move would be a much better solution.

It isn't silly at all for the Giants to claim San Jose. The A's, in writing, granted the Giants territorial rights to San Jose. The bonds the Giants sold to build their stadium were secured with the understanding that San Jose was part of the Giants' territory.

Suggesting the Bay Area is not large enough to support two major league teams, however, does seem silly in the context of Major League Baseball, considering that the Giants outdrew the Cubs and the A's outdrew the White Sox this year.

Candlestick probably wouldn't be a much greater hardship than the coliseum in Oakland, whatever it's called in any given week. Even at AT&T, though, you often have to bring a blanket for night games in July.

[doublem23]

Originally Posted by DSpivack

The 49ers will be moving down there (Santa Clara, anyway) in, what, a year or two?

Next season

[blandman]

Um...what am I missing here? None of those three cities has a million people, and we're talking about a massive amount of territory going down to San Jose where commutes are not the easiest thing. Yeah, they're both drawing now. But San Fran has been winning a lot of titles lately and Oakland's won two straight divisions. If both teams aren't perennial contenders, I don't think it works.

The area has not been able to support two teams for the duration. Oakland's attendance was incredibly abysmal for almost a decade, and they had winners in that time. The fan base isn't there.

[Hitmen77]

Originally Posted by blandman

As silly as it is for San Francisco to claim San Jose is there's when they both obviously share support in that area, moving the A's to San Jose is also silly and just a short term solution. The San Fran/Oakland/San Jose area is not large enough to support two major league teams. An out of market move would be a much better solution.

Not that I agree with it, but people say this about Chicago too (that it can't support two teams).