Lew Wolff is stepping down as the managing partner of the Athletics and will sell the majority of his stake in the team to the remaining partners, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Wolff will be chariman emeritus moving forth, per Slusser, and majority owner John Fisher will assume his previous role as the team’s managing partner.
Furthermore, Slusser reports that Michael Crowley will no longer serve as the team’s president and will become a senior advisor to the ownership group. Dave Kaval, president of Major League Soccer’s San Jose Earthquakes, will become the new team president in Oakland, according to Slusser.
“I want to thank Lew for his leadership over the last 11 years,” said Fisher in a press release formally announcing the ownership shakeup. “His initiative and love of the game of baseball brought my family to the A’s, and we would not be involved without him. Lew has given the organization all of his energy and experience for the last 11 years and I look forward to a new chapter in our working relationship and friendship. It is a privilege for me to steward the A’s at this important moment for the franchise.”
The exact ramifications that this transition will have on Oakland’s hunt for a new stadium remain to be seen, but Kaval briefly addressed the issue in a statement of his own: “Given my longstanding love of baseball and my experience building Avaya Stadium (the Earthquakes’ home stadium), I am enthusiastic to join the Athletics as the Club pursues a world-class ballpark in Oakland for the best fans in baseball.”
SJ Quakes President joining the A’s, eh??? SJ Athletics, get it done MLB. Pay SFG what they want. Time for the A’s to stop acting like a low budget small market team, while existing in one of the biggest markets in the game. SJ deserves an MLB team more than any other city in America. This has been a no-brainer f0r 10+ years now…which shows how smrt MLB really has been in this situation.
No. Just… No.
Although moving the Athletics there makes some sense. I am confused how SJ deserves a city more than any other in America when they have the Athletics and Giants basically right next door. There are many other regions and cities that deserve a team or even a 2nd team more so than SJ.
SJ has a higher population than OAK or SF, a larger economy than most cities, a massively rabid Sharks fanbase (proving they are good sports fans) and is not connected to SF or OAK by public transportation (BART).
Honestly, the Rays should move there if the A’s plan on moving to downtown Oakland.
Wondering why it wouldn’t click that silicon valley has more money than almost every city with you? SJ deserves to be a 4-sport city than anywhere that isn’t currently one. “There are many other regions and cities that deserve a team or even a 2nd team more so than SJ.” – Name them please, you are so wrong with that comment it hurts to read.
Silicon Valley is a bunch of fair weather fans. Look at the 49ers. Brand new stadium but since they are terrible nobody goes to the games. Imagine what the attendance would be for an Athletics team that plays 81 home games and are sub .500.
And the bay is booming. Lots of businesses pushed out of SF are moving to Oakland. The people have plenty of money to support a team in Oakland. Plus they are some of the best and most knowledgeable fans.
Montreal, Portland,OR, Nashville, Hell throw in Puerto Rico.
It’s not a matter of “pay the giants what they want”, when what they want is the Bay to themselves, without any A’s at all. The whole SJ territorial rights dispute is because the giants don’t want a financial competitor for local money.
That’s true, but also absurd. The Bay Area is America’s 4th largest market behind LA and NY and probably is bigger than Chicago at this point. There’s room for 2 and even 3 teams. SFG simply is not going to get their own way here. Even if Oakland left, it wouldnt be “all to themselves” for long, as the Rays would get moved there so quick the G-men’s heads would spin.
They’ve had to share the Bay Area for almost 50 years. I don’t know why they’d even try to think they’d ever get the town to themselves.
No. You can have the Santa Clara 49ers.
Umm The A’s own the quakes that’s why he is there because they know him already. SJ is dead and that pipe dream is gone with Lew. They are building in Oakland!
With Wolff out, maybe they’ll finally pony up some cash on quality FA..Bring Cespedes back!!
He definitely fits a need in LF/CF and it wouldn’t be the first time they snuck up and surprised everyone by signing him! A new stadium opening in the next 3-5 years might get him more interested though.
WAY too many cooks in the Kitchen.
they got like 7 owners – too many people with different agendas.
Lewis Wolff
Keith Wolff
John Fisher
Donald Fisher
Michael Crowley
Billy Beane
Every team has minority owners, John J. Fisher & Lew Wolff were the majority ones, and now it looks like Fisher is going to be sole one now.
All those A’s fans calling for Wolff’s head have received their wish
and its always been meaningless and dumb to blame him for Selig’s pathetic excuse for doing the commissioner job.
Lew Wolff has lied sooooo many times he is a bumbling idiot and has done NOTHING positive with his time in Oakland. All he did was challenge territory rights which he said day 1 he wasn’t going to try to do.
Sale the A’s to the Warriors ownership, prosper, business minded group, eager to win… Look at the Warriors now and where they were 5 years ago… “if you don’t want to spend to stay competitive in this baseball business you’d better look on a different direction” George Steinbrenner…