A's Fans Plan to Move Forward with "Reverse Boycott" on June 13
Last week I wrote about how a group of Oakland A's fans were planning a "reverse boycott" with the intention to fill up the Coliseum on a random Tuesday night against a non-marquee opponent with the hope of showing ownership that there are fans in Oakland, but that they've been fed up with how the team has been run. The fans want a change.
John Fisher had some ideas for said change, and had his Team President Dave Kaval go out and announce that the team had signed a binding purchase agreement for land in Las Vegas. There are still hurdles that need to be cleared over the next six weeks before the Las Vegas legislature closes on June 5 and more or less stops progress on the Vegas Ballpark Project for the rest of the year, but as of right now, the A's are fully focused on Las Vegas.
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said in a statement on Wednesday night that the City would be ceasing negotiations with the A's and moving forward with alternatives for redevelopment of Howard Terminal.
With all of this news swirling, and the hearts of the remaining A's fans aching, I reached out to Stu Clary, one of the people in charge of the festivities on June 13. I simply asked if plans had changed due to recent events.
"I think we stay the course. Lots of things can still happen" he said.
In fact, members of the group are even adding a second event to be held at the first home game once the A's return from their current road trip.
We want to be crystal clear - we will NOT let a billionaire attack our City and our Fans. We will continue to fight for our ROOTS.
— (Un)Rooted In Oakland - SELL THE TEAM (@OaklandRooted) April 22, 2023
📍SELL THE TEAM Protest - Friday, April 28th, Bring signs, get loud, and voice your frustration. Park in the BART parking lot and walk over! pic.twitter.com/7xzXq8yfum
If you're looking for a glimmer of hope that the A's may stay in Oakland, this isn't the first time that the A's have bought some land and had a big announcement.
A’s bought land in Fremont and announced there ❌
— Casey Pratt (@CaseyAPratt) April 21, 2023
A’s had an agreement to purchase land in San José ❌
A’s bought land at the Coliseum site ❌
A’s announced Laney/Peralta site ❌
A’s had an agreement for land at Howard Terminal ❌
A’s announced buying land in LV ❓
How this all shakes out remains to be seen, but Fisher's track record of "getting things done" isn't exactly sterling on this front.
Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.