Could the A's Open Up Mount Davis for Final Game at Coliseum?
The Oakland A's final game at the Coliseum is coming up in just a few months, and there seems to be a good chance that it's going to be a packed house. Whether it's A's fans saying goodbye, baseball fans that want that last ticket as a memento to say they were there, or some national media that will make the trek to Oakland for history, it's certainly looking like the A's last day in Oakland will be a loud one.
A few days ago we mentioned that the team's official ticketing site didn't have any more tickets available for purchase in the first two decks. All that remains are third deck seats.
Yesterday we noted that an A's fan went through the trouble of counting every single little circle (seat) for the A's final game, and came up with a projected attendance of 38,489 fans. That would be the highest total at an A's home game since Saturday August 6, 2022 when they hosted the San Francisco Giants, drawing 40,065.
With the A's ticketing site showing similar data to what the fan produced, it's looking as though the Coliseum is going to get a pretty big send-off, so we asked the A's the question that fans have been pondering on social media: Will they open up Mount Davis?
A team spokesperson said they would keep us apprised of their plans.
Opening up Mount Davis could be a little trickier than simple supply and demand, however. On the one hand, the demand appears to be there since the event could be nearly at capacity with three months until game day. Typically the closer an event gets, the more there is a rush to get those tickets.
If the A's decide to open up the mountain tops, that could net A's owner John Fisher a nice chunk of extra money. With 20,000 seats at $50 a pop, that's $1 million. Obviously there would be costs involved in staffing the area and hiring extra security, but that's a nice chunk of change that could be worth it. With those being the final seats available for this event, the team could even go above the $50 price.
On the other hand, is it enough money to off-set the potential PR damage it would cause for the franchise? Fans being excited to be at a baseball game is not typically something that owners are worried about. However, given the circumstances in play for this specific game and the claims that there are no fans in Oakland, which has set the team on a path towards relocation, a ballpark packed to the brim with fans presumably chanting "Sell the team!" wouldn't be a great look for the franchise as they leave the place they've called home since 1968.
Then again, if the place is packed and Mt. Davis isn't open, then that's also going to cause some people to ask lots of questions as well. There will likely to be camera crews from media organizations all across the country in Oakland for this event, and they'll all have a chance to capture a packed house that has extra seating tarped off for some reason.
That could get people questioning what's really been going on in Oakland this whole time and why the franchise is moving in the first place. That would also be an undesired outcome for the franchise.
There's not a perfect answer to this question for the A's. Most fans would agree that they would prefer the tarps to come off to allow as many fans in as possible. Fisher could make his extra money on them this one time, and those fans will have this one last memory at a place that many consider a second home.
It would also be important for the fans to have the last images of the Coliseum nationwide to be a gathering of 55,000 people there to say goodbye, and serve as one final reminder that they have never been the problem.
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JASON BURKE
Jason is the host of the Locked on A's podcast, and the managing editor of Inside the A's. He's a new father and can't wait to take his son to his first baseball game at the Coliseum.