Sacramento fans have never had a professional baseball team, but beginning next year, they will when the Oakland Athletics play there.
The A’s announced that they will move to the capital of California until at least 2027, as their current stadium lease ends this year, and they await their move to Las Vegas.
The team’s future home in Sutter Health Park, ironically, the home of their local rival San Francisco Giants’ Triple-A affiliate Sacramento River Cats, is roughly a 90-minute drive from Oakland Coliseum, saving plenty of A’s fans a long trip back-and-forth.
Fans of the Oakland Athletics with signs saying Managing Partner John Fisher should sell the team during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at RingCentral Coliseum on April 28, 2023, in Oakland, California. (Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
But despite over 100 miles and plenty time being saved, it doesn’t matter to some.
“I will not watch them. I will not wear any green and gold,” Sacramento resident and A’s fan Ray Perez, 36, told the New York Post. “I used to go to 10-15 A’s games a year . . . I live two minutes away [from Sutter Health Park] and I won’t be going to any.”
“The notion of supporting the A’s as the local team under these circumstances is unthinkable,” added Craig Merry. “The way this situation has unfolded is an affront to the essence of sports and its fans.”
For others, it’s a murky situation. Sheretta Lane admits she is “conflicted.”
An aerial view of Sutter Health Park on January 24, 2021, in West Sacramento, Calif. The stadium is the home of the Sacramento River Cats. (Kirby Lee/Getty Images)
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“I’m disgusted with what ownership is doing to the A’s, but I’m a little excited to have MLB in my backyard,” the River Cats season-ticket holder said.
Owner John Fisher is indeed public enemy No. 1, and despite the team moving close to her home, Jennifer Berger-Coleman is hanging on strong.
“John Fisher deserves no loyalty, but the city of Oakland and the A’s do,” Berger-Coleman said. “I have to stand in solidarity and boycott anything that Fisher does that does not include them going back to Oakland. Giants fans felt the same way prior to Oracle Park being built when the team was preparing to move to Florida.”
“We explored several locations for a temporary home, including the Oakland Coliseum. Even with the long-standing relationship and good intentions on all sides in the negotiations with Oakland, the conditions to achieve an agreement seemed out of reach,” Fisher said in a statement earlier this month. “We understand the disappointment this news brings to our fans, as this season marks our final one in Oakland. Throughout this season, we will honor and celebrate our time in Oakland, and will share additional details soon.”
Fans hold up a “SELL” flag as the Boston Red Sox play the Oakland Athletics at Oakland Coliseum on April 2, 2024, in Oakland, California. (Loren Elliott/Getty Images)
Fans boycotted the A’s home opener. Paid attendance for the game against the Cleveland Guardians was 13,522, but many fans gathered in the parking lot to protest Fisher and team president Dave Kaval.
Fox News’ Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.
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