Ken Rosenthal on A's Relocation Saga

Could the A's actually sign free agents while playing in a minor league ballpark?

There hasn't been a lot of national coverage when it comes to the Oakland A's potential relocation to Las Vegas, so when Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and the Fair Territory Podcast sent out a call for mailbag questions, I decided to throw an A's question his way. Then he answered it on his Monday show.

The question was simple: If the A's end up playing in a minor league facility for three seasons, would they be able to attract any free agents before they land in Las Vegas? 

This seemed like something the great Ken Rosenthal would have some insight into given his relationships with both front offices and agents. 

Ken's response: "I think we would start with, will the A's even be interested in signing free agents, because it's not something that they really do in their present existence. 

"Now, is anybody going to want to play them in Sacramento or in Las Vegas, or some other minor league park from 2025-2027? I would suggest the answer is no, and I would also suggest that the A's don't care because they're not going to be in that market."

From what A's president Dave Kaval has said (believing him is certainly a choice), the team plans to spend money once they arrive in Las Vegas. The typical plan we see teams follow is to make a splash ahead of a new ballpark opening. It's even more important to have a winning product with some stars when you arrive in a new city. So I may offer a little pushback on the A's not caring entirely when it comes to dabbling in the free agent market over the next four seasons, but Rosenthal also points out that he doesn't think that free agents will be jumping at the chance to play at a minor league facility either. 

If owner John Fisher can come up with the funding for this new ballpark, then there is a path to landing the team on the Strip. The question that remains now is how good that 2028 team is going to be. Everyone's favorite Nevada politician Steve Yeager pointed out last summer that Vegas doesn't tolerate losers, so the pressure must really be on Fisher and the A's to put out a good product. Pay no attention to the Raiders 32-35 record and one trip to the Wild Card round since moving to Vegas. 

Rosenthal goes on to say that he's looked at all of the relocations and couldn't find a single one that has looked like what the A's are planning to do. "It goes to the question, why did Baseball allow John Fisher to embark on this course?" 

The full Fair Territory show can be seen below, with more from Ken talking about the A's relocation saga right around the 25 minute mark.