The Oakland A's Moving To Las Vegas Storyline Is Picking Up Steam As The Team Officially Files Bid To Buy And Build Stadium Where The Tropicana Presently Stands

Dante12/07/2021 9:49 PM

NBC Las Vegas - The Oakland Athletics have visited Las Vegas multiple times and have seen multiple stadium sites.
If Wednesday's new report is true, they're after one of the most famous corners in the city.
The report, from our partners at CNBC, says the team has made an offer on the property where the Tropicana stands: 35 acres at the corner of Tropicana and the Strip, home to one of Las Vegas' last legacy resorts.
The Tropicana sits in Clark County Commissioner Jim Gibson’s district.
“As we have seen with the NHL and the NFL, Las Vegas is a great place to have a pro team,” Gibson said in a statement. “We have the best fans in the country and if this comes to fruition, it would be very exciting to welcome Major League Baseball to our community.”
In April, Bally's bought the Tropicana for $308 million. CNBC reports the team has made a bid on the property.
"Unfortunately, we cannot comment at this time," an A's spokesperson told me Wednesday.

Giphy Images.

Now we're fuckin talking.

Contrary to Hubbs' story a few months ago about a county commission vote passing to keep the A's in town by, wait for it, approving

… a non-binding resolution stating the county’s intent to contribute a portion of property taxes generated by the project into a tax district for the purpose of financing on-site affordable housing, parks and other “infrastructure of community-wide significance” around the ballpark site over a 45-year period. The resolution does not officially commit the county yet to a definite course of action.

Yah, thanks but no thanks Alameida County.

The A's might be one of the most guilty teams of sucking the teet of MLB revenue sharing and being stingy as fuck, but even their biggest critic can't blame them for telling their local politicians to take their crock of vague bullshit they "approved" 4-1 a couple months ago and shove it.

After over a decade of battling back and forth over land, and public funds for a new stadium to help them compete, now that they're publicly exploring options of a move, the city wants to play ball. (No pun intended but intended).

(And no, like that squid Bill Simmons, I also don't believe taxpayers should fund billionaire's playgrounds.)

But here's the deal.

The Knights and Raiders have both been beautiful test cases for the viability of pro sports teams in Las Vegas. They're flourishing.

The A's, pretty much a laughing stock attendance-wise, while still remaining relatively competitive despite being on the lower end of league payrolls, can either roll the dice and build a brand spanking new billion-dollar stadium, with all the bells and whistles in hopes that it will somehow, someway, attract fans that will appear out of the blue, like the Marlins did. Or, they can follow suit, move to Vegas like the Raiders and Knights did, and luck into an even better location in one of the most prime spots on the entire strip to boot.

tupungato. Getty Images.

If the ballpark ends up at the Tropicana site, it would add to an already robust offering of event spaces on the south portion of the resort corridor. The possible 30,000-35,000-seat stadium would be located within walking distance of Allegiant Stadium, T-Mobile Arena, the MGM Grand Garden arena and Michelob Ultra Arena at Mandalay Bay hotel-casino.

Giphy Images.

And just look at this baby.

Don't tell me Kris Bryant and Bryce Harper wouldn't want to close out their careers playing in their hometown if those were the digs.

In May, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred gave the A’s the green light to start exploring Las Vegas as a potential landing spot for relocation from Oakland.

And suitors have come calling.

Howard Hughes Vice President Peter Riley told the Review-Journal last month that the company — which owns the A’s Triple-A affiliate, the Aviators, and the Las Vegas Ballpark they play in — would be open to donating land to the major league team if it chose to relocate to Summerlin.

Free land to play 20 minutes away from The Strip.

CNBC also reported the Wynn Golf Course was in contention, while rumors of land owned by Caesars is no longer being considered.

Not a shabby backup plan.

Ethan Miller. Getty Images.

Even if the Athletics would be forgoing some taxpayer assistance to build in Oakland, (Vegas has said from the outset they're not interested in ponying up more money for another sports team), this is still the no-brainer of all no-brainers.

Oakland will go from being an afterthought to the top of the list for visiting teams fans, season ticket holders, suite sales, advertising, merch, attendance, and concessions. Every team playing at The A's will bring in thousands of fans for the series. And when people go to Vegas they go with the intent on blowing money. The resorts and casinos will scoop up blocks of season tickets for staff, advertising partners, and spenders, as well as suites for the brass and whales.

Not to mention the incredible built-in home-field advantage the A's will enjoy. If you know anybody who lives in Vegas, they live far from the strip, and don't head down there unless they work there, or absolutely have to. They act like they've been there before, because they have. Unlike tourists who come in blazing hot, hit it hard and heavy, and burn out like a supernova, heading home broke and in shambles, they're pros. The A's players, as long as they're scouted correctly, should handle the Vegas residency with professionalism. Those visiting teams though? They'll be up all night at Zouk, or at the craps tables, or prowling for hookers, showing up the next day to the stadium full of booze, drugs, and regret. That stuff adds up and is probably good for a good 10-15 game record bump a year.

There's probably a whole lot more I'm missing out on that people a lot smarter than me have figured out as well.

Bottom line is this needs to happen.