On this day in 1931, the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League traded catcher Ernie Lombardi to the Brooklyn Robins (who later became the Dodgers). Lombardi, an Oakland native, only played one season in Brooklyn, but he went on to enjoy a Hall of Fame career spent mostly with Cincinnati.
Here are some news items about the modern-day Oakland nine…
- Brian Fuentes' now-finalized two-year contract is worth a guaranteed $10.5MM with a $6.5MM club option for 2013, reports The Associated Press. Fuentes will earn $5MM in both 2011 and 2012 and be paid a $500K buyout if the option isn't picked up. The left-hander can also earn escalating six-figure bonuses relating to games finished and will be paid $200K if he's traded at any point during the life of the contract.
- In spite of the games-finished bonuses, Fuentes says he has no problem serving as a set-up man for incumbent A's closer Andrew Bailey, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. "I was told he's the closer," Fuentes said. "There is no competition in my mind."
- Slusser also has details on the plate-appearance bonuses in Conor Jackson's new Oakland contract. The A's avoided arbitration with Jackson on Tuesday.
- Slusser hears from assistant GM David Forst that the club might be in the market for a backup infielder, though the Athletics want to keep Steve Tolleson, who was designated for assignment today.
- Major League Baseball needs to faciliate the Athletics' desired move from Oakland to San Jose for both the sake of the franchise and the league as a whole, argues Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com.
The San Jose A’s?
I actually like the sound of that.
Haha, I was about to say this the moment I read that too.
Sounds dull, Oakland A’s sounds better.
Jack London Stadium in Oakland sounds perfect
Or Alameda County Colliseum in Jack London…
Anywhere in Oakland sounds perfect if they want to move.
Yeah but Jack London is only 15 minutes away from me haha. If they move there I would be able to walk to a game after class
I think Oakland has proven that it cannot support a major league team. I don’t see how they can ever get a new stadium built there.
They can, the recent mayors just haven’t wanted to deal with them, they’d rather focus on stuff like schools, roads, and stupid junk and stuff like that. They need to put focus on the real issue and keep the A’s in Oakland! haha
But seriously, Oakland could support a new stadium, the question is if both sides would negotiate another way or place to build one in Oakland
Oakland may be able to get a new stadium built, but that doesn’t mean they can support the team still. Oakland’s gov’t is the only side pushing for a stadium there now; aside from the hardcore group of fans (who are the ones showing up still), most of the people in Oakland seem to either be indifferent or completely against the city spending money on a new stadium.
San Jose has both the gov’t and its people on the A’s side already. They’ve bought most of the land they’ll need and they’ve already approved a stadium measure with the voters. There’s a far better fan/monetary base to tap in SJ than there is in Oakland.
What are you talking about?! It didn’t even make the ballot last year and the city had said it doesn’t have the money to spend on another stadium in sj after it has already approved for a MLS 20k seat stadium near the airport, which is also being proposed by lew Wolfe who also owns the earthquakes. SJ did a poll to see if people would want the A’s to move there and the voted no. So it won’t be as simple as just getting up and moving there either..
Misinformation. A poll with the exact language they’d use for the ballot had over 60 percent support.
The San JosA’s.
If they go to SJ they are going to become like the giants. wine and cheese instead of beer and hotdogs
You must not have ever been to any giants games then huh? I’ve been to a few and trust me, they can be rowdy like any other fans. I sat in the bleachers and saw a guy get beer dumped on him. If you wanna make statements like that, pleaseeee go to a game first and see what they’re really like. (this coming from an a’s fan in a family of giants fans)
Of course I’ve been to giants games. And I’m sure I’ve probably been to more giants games than you ever have as my employer gives them away every year, and I am a Oakland A’s season ticket holder. And I’ve also been to almost every MLB stadium in this country. So I would be the first to know how fans are around the country for the most part. Honestly, so far giants fans are the most tame and sophisticated in my opinion. So far at least.
The SF Giants are truly scum for making this problem happen, after the A’s did exactly the right thing for them all those years ago. Now, they aren’t returning the favor. A truly classless organization.
You know, envy is one of the seven deadly sins. I’m sure there’s a Kevin Spacey joke in there somewhere…
Hey, most of us A’s fans who have been following these details have hated the Giants long before they won the world series.
Here’s another little example of the Giants sticking it to A’s…
In Nov-Dec of 1998 a new sports radio station (1050 am) started up in the bay area, which at the time was the only sports station to challenge KNBR 680, the flagship station and partial owner of the Giants. This new station broadcasted the raider games that season, and I had hoped that they would pick up the A’s as well, as the A’s had been bouncing around from an oldies station, to a conservative talk station, back to the oldies, then over to the country station, then to the 50’s crooner station…it was a joke…we needed a dedicated sports station that could help drum up interest in the team…and finally this seemed like a possibility. But within months KNBR had bought out 1050 and turned it into a sister station, sending out a mirror broadcast of KNBR. 1050 continued to broadcast Raider games and the two stations hyped up the Giants and 49ers as well (though they didn’t get 49er games til a few years later), but the A’s were left stranded. The A’s finally hit rock bottom when a few years later, their station was bought out mid-year by a christian talk network, and they preceded every A’s game with an apology to their listeners for subjecting them to a baseball game for the next 4-5 hours.
It really feels like we’re the red-headed step child of Bay Area baseball. The Giants have the nice ballpark, the major radio station hyping them up, the bigger TV station, the higher revenue. And they’ve kept this foothold by keeping the A’s down where ever they could. I’m just hoping now that they have their world series win, The A’s can use this opportunity to head south.
Ben, I think your my new best friend!!
Pete you read my mind! True classless organization. Giants fans are blind and can’t see what a selfish franshise they are. The A’s did the favor of giving them the territorial rights in the early 90’s so they can get out of that dumb of candlestick, and now that we want a stadium they aren’t willing to return the favor. People always rip on me because I always talk bad about the giants, and now they see why. Athletics Nation!!
I am a Giants fan and it pisses me off that the Giants don’t just allow the A’s to go to San Jose. The A’s were decent enough to give it to them when they were on top now the Giants need to do the right thing. I think the Giants need to understand that real Giants fans are not going to go to A’s games if they happen to love in or around San Jose. I think calling them classless is a bit much.
Wow John your the first giants fan that actually agrees with all of this.
I think the bay area is more interesting when both teams are relevant. I am not one of those Giants fans who hate the A’s. Some of my first games were A’s games. Donnie Hill used to be my favorite player as a kid. I just believe that given the history here the right thing to do is to repay the A’s kindness. I think there needs to be one condition though, no more white shoes. Those just kill me.
well thats a deal breaker
Also, I would have liked to hear Fuentes say “I pitch like a closer no matter what inning I’m in”.
Brian Fuentes is left handed, not to nitpick.
Yeah…I was about to say that. Fuentes’ delivery may be deceptive…but not THAT deceptive…lol
Really needs to happen soon though, as RDA funds are going to be taken away really soon! If not now, it will be never.
I agree! Peter Gammons spoke about the need for the Athletics to get a new stadium on MLBN HotStove today. He said that Selig would support the Athletics move to San Jose, and be in favor of rescinding the territorial rights of the Giants in San Jose. Gammons said it makes complete financial sense to move the team to San Jose, and that the Bay Area can easily support both teams more than adequately. I’m sure Oakland’s current stadium can be a deterrent to prospective free agents. Hopefully, Wolff can take advantage of the RDA funds, and start the land acquisition and construction process soon and have the new San Jose stadium complete in time for the 2015 season.
I’d so much rather see them in Fremont (although I believe that’s out of the question now) because it’s midway between Oakland and San Jose, and closer to Pleasanton and Dublin so fans from all three areas can easily make it out to games.
Of course, I’d rather see them stay in Oakland, but that’s just if they don’t.
With San Jose being the 10th largest city in the country, it should easily be able to support the Athletics. It also appears that with San Jose’s business community with companies such as E-Bay, Cisco, Hitatchi, and IBM, it would stand to reason that corporate sponsorships (skyboxes, advertising, etc) would increase dramatically.
Do you think it would be wise for the Athletics to target a location in the northern part of San Jose, to provide an easier commute for fans from Oakland, Fremont, Pleasanton, and Dublin?
I agree that in financial terms that San Jose would be smartest, never disagreed with that, but i’m just saying that from a fan’s standpoint, that’s all. I’d go to twice the games in fremont than san jose personally.
The proposed location in San Jose is already next to a major transportation hub (Diridon Station).
I want them to stay in Oakland for my own selfish reasons BUT will be a fan regardless of San Jose or not…
At first I really wanted them to stay in Oakland… for tradition, it’s closer for me, etc etc
But now I’m to the point that I don’t even care anymore. I just want a new stadium so we can sign some players. Beane is always SO close to putting together a contending team and it seems that a couple of big name free agents would put us over the top… but it never happens and I’m sick of it.
Another thing about a potential move of the A’s to San Jose: Not only would they move to the USA’s 10 biggest city, but they’d be that much closer and more accessible to growing communities in Monterrey and Gilroy.
I’m happy for the Giants for finally getting their World Series title, but their strangle-hold on San Jose, I have to agree, is classless. The funny thing is that the Giants don’t have much control over it ultimately because the decision to let the A’s move to San Jose comes from a vote of MLB owners. The Giants have threatened legal action if this happens, but it’s definitely classless if the rest of baseball agrees it’s in the league’s best interest and the Giants are still fighting for land the A’s only gave them in the first place because the Giants were looking into moving there years ago. Wake up Giants!
So a good business model (maximizing profits) in regards to SJ (either they get a larger buyout or get to keep SJ) is classless?
And what does it matter to the current SF/OAK owners if the former SF/OAK owners swapped SJ? Just b/c you bought a business that benefited from taking advantage of someone other entity’s poor business decision’s doesn’t mean that you owe the other entity a favor.
No, but the Haas family of San Francisco owned the A’s as a public service to keep the team for the Bay Area rather than as a profit-making venture, and agreed to give the Giants territorial rights to San Jose for the same reason. You’d think that the successor billionaires in San Francisco would show similar class, but when you’ve got a Microsoft guy in a leadership role, that must be too much to expect.