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Athletics preparing to announce new ballpark site in Oakland

Mark Townsend
Yahoo Sports Contributor

For every step the Oakland Athletics have taken toward identifying a new ballpark location in or around Oakland, it seems they’ve taken 10 steps back.

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Perhaps that’s about to change though, as the team revealed on Friday that it intends to announce a new ballpark site in Oakland before the end of 2017.

The announcement is about as vague as it gets. No other details or hints were provided. Well, unless you consider the inclusion of the Oakland skyline as some indication of the stadium’s future home.

The announcement comes at an interesting time in the city’s sports history. Oakland is still reeling from the revelation that the Raiders will be leaving following the 2018 season, with Las Vegas pegged as their ultimate destination. That came on the heels of the Golden State Warriors announcing they will be moving across the Bay to San Francisco in the near future.

It also comes just 24 hours after commissioner Rob Manfred dangled Las Vegas as a potential future home for an MLB team. Manfred did add that the league would not consider expanding until stadium situations with the A’s and Tampa Bay Rays were settled.

Will the Athletics finally be able to leave the Coliseum behind? (AP)
Will the Athletics finally be able to leave the Coliseum behind? (AP)

The A’s have been on that trail for several years now. According to the San Jose Mercury News, owner John Fisher has already invested millions just into doing research while searching for the best place for the A’s to build a new stadium.

President Dave Kaval has been tasked with leading the stadium project. His staff has reportedly focused on four sites, which include the current Coliseum location, along with Howard Terminal, an area north of Jack London Square and Laney College. It seems safe to assume one of those locations would be the front runner when the A’s finally make their announcement.

It’s worth noting that the A’s announcement on Friday doesn’t necessarily confirm a new ballpark is coming. There’s a lot of red tape in the form of planning and financial discussions to get through first. The A’s know that routine better than anyone after having pushes to build in San Jose and Fremont turned back when the San Francisco Giants flexed territorial rights.

On the bright side, it does indicate confidence that there’s momentum in the right direction and that Oakland can at least feel optimistic that its baseball team will be around for the long haul.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!