Former Miami Marlins President on Latest A's Press Release

David Samson lifts the curtain on what was really behind the Oakland A's latest press release

Last week former Miami Marlins president David Samson shared his thoughts on A's owner John Fisher's financials. This week, he provided some insight into the A's latest press release to announce that the club had selected a construction manager (Mortenson I McCarthy) for their proposed ballpark in Las Vegas. 

"Guess how close you are when you hire a contractor? It's mile one of the marathon. You're feelin' good, but man, there's a lot of ground to cover. Hiring a contractor the way the A's did yesterday is public posturing. It's to show that they're making progress towards a stadium in Nevada."

Mortenson is based in Minneapolis and has been involved in the construction of Atlanta's Truist Park along with Minnesota's Target Field. The hiring of the team that was on the Target Field project is interesting, because it only covers 8.5 acres. The proposed A's ballpark in Las Vegas is set to fit on nine acres, but will also need some sort of roof involved, whether that's the partially retractable or fully retractable roof that has been mentioned in previous releases. The team hasn't said as much, but you have to believe that they could even shift to a dome if they can't figure out how to make the retractable roof work on the allotted land. Bottom line: There needs to be a cover on this ballpark. 

Samson also points out that the team of Mortenson I McCarthy doesn't actually build the ballpark itself. That is done by subcontractors. Instead, Mortenson I McCarthy are more like the CEO's of the project, as he puts it. "They do the flow of the construction timeline. Who's doing what [and] when."

"Guess what they don't have now? They don't have a design. They don't have a budget. They don't have a bid. They have nothing but a press release. What the A's are trying to get you to believe is that this step of hiring of Mortenson I McCarthy is an example of progress."

He then ends the segment with what he wants the viewer's takeaway to be and what's really happening. "What's really happening is panic. Fear. Loathing. All of it, in Las Vegas."

You can watch the full segment down below, starting at the 19:45 mark.