Passan: Latest on Oakland A’s stadium plans, Las Vegas move
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Jeff Passan, ESPN
With Major League Baseball typically sharing a tentative schedule for the next season with teams early every year, the Oakland A’s were supposed to have figured out by the end of December where they’ll play in 2025 and beyond before moving to Las Vegas in 2028. That didn’t happen. A mid-January deadline passed. Soon enough an end-of-January target will, too.
Even after the A’s secured the deal to abscond from Oakland permanently, the franchise’s near-term future remains in limbo. It’s not just the MLB-low payroll or the lack of significant improvement of a roster from a team that went 50-112 last year. It’s something as fundamental as not having a home following the expiration of their lease with RingCentral Coliseum after this season.
Here is what you need to know about where the A’s stadium plans currently stand, according to multiple people involved with the process to find the team a home.
What is holding up the decision?
It’s pretty simple: local TV money. The A’s contract with Comcast to broadcast their games on NBC Sports Bay Area calls for the team to receive about $70 million next year, sources said. But if the A’s aren’t in Oakland, the regional sports network is no longer bound to pay the rights fee. The delicate balance between maximizing TV money and securing a temporary home is complicated by the strict nature of the Comcast deal. Even a move to play in a Triple-A park in Sacramento, about 85 miles northeast of Oakland, would not be covered under the A’s current contract.
Already the move to Las Vegas will take the A’s from 10th-largest TV market to one ranked 40th. Clearly TV money was a secondary consideration for the permanent move. But a temporary one, even if the A’s negotiate a new deal with Comcast or another regional sports network, could be for a fraction of what they’re set to receive now. That very conundrum — and the leverage Comcast holds — is gumming up a resolution.
What are the likeliest options?
The two cities at the top of the list currently, according to sources: Sacramento, the home of the A’s Triple-A affiliate, and Salt Lake City, which would love to use the A’s as proof of concept that it warrants an expansion franchise in the future.
Both cities have NBA franchises that regularly sell out all of their home games. Sacramento is the 20th-ranked TV market, while Salt Lake City is 27th. Sacramento offers an easier short-term solution — mayor Darrell Steinberg told The San Francisco Chronicle he is “over the moon about the possibility” — while Salt Lake City is, for MLB, the longer-term play.
Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park seats more than 10,000 — and, with standing-room-only tickets and lawn seats, can go up to 14,000. The ownership group in Salt Lake, which previously controlled the Utah Jazz, is building a new Triple-A stadium for 2025 in South Jordan, Utah, that could seat up to 11,000.
While Sacramento previously had shown no aspirations to bring MLB to town, Salt Lake City has been effusive in its desire. After A’s officials recently toured the city to assess its viability, Big League Utah, the group at the heart of Salt Lake City’s efforts, erected seven billboards around the city that said: “UTAH WANTS THE A’S.”
Were the A’s to land in Sacramento, they could renegotiate their deal with NBC Sports Bay Area, which broadcasts Kings games. Should they move to Salt Lake City, sources said, the team could land a new deal, though because that television territory currently belongs to the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies, it would add an extra layer of negotiation.
Could they stay in Oakland?
Potentially, though it’s unlikely. The A’s do own 50% of the Coliseum — and the City of Oakland, still stinging from the A’s leaving town, owns the other half. The team and city haven’t talked in 10 months, sources said, and so if a conversation about extending the lease for three more years is to come, it would be at the A’s behest.
The situation really will be a litmus test for how much A’s owner John Fisher is willing to do for money. Staying in Oakland would mean going hat in hand to politicians that find his actions loathsome and negotiating with them. It would mean inviting constant sell-the-team chants — the sort of thing that might crop up in Sacramento and almost certainly wouldn’t in Salt Lake City. It would mean a near-daily relitigation of a move that a number of power brokers around the sport still see as short-sighted and wrong.
At some point, cutting the cord just makes sense. And the expiration of the stadium lease seems like the right point.
Why don’t they just move to Las Vegas?
Using the Triple-A park in Summerlin — about a dozen miles from the A’s stadium site at the old Tropicana hotel on Las Vegas Boulevard — is an option, though it wouldn’t exactly constitute the splash the A’s are looking for upon their move to Vegas.
There is precedent. The Washington Nationals spent their first three seasons at RFK Stadium as Nationals Park was being built. But to introduce themselves to a new city in a minor league park with a wretched team is not at the top of the A’s priority list and makes Las Vegas, at least for now, a long shot for 2025-27.
Will they make it to Vegas by 2028?
Getting a stadium deal in the first place took plenty of legwork and lobbying. Getting the stadium built by 2028 depends upon staying on schedule — something at which the A’s aren’t exactly proving themselves adept. With $380 million in public money going to help fund the $1.5 billion stadium project, a group called Schools Over Stadiums is pushing for a ballot referendum that would put the use of tax dollars to a vote. If shovels aren’t in the ground by early 2025, sources said, there are questions about whether the A’s really will be ready to debut off the Strip by 2028.
What will the A’s look like when they do go to Vegas?
In their proposal to MLB’s relocation community, the A’s suggested by the time they arrived in Vegas, they could carry a payroll in the $170 million range, as The Athletic first reported. This is from an organization whose largest Opening Day payroll was $92.2 million in 2019.
Is it possible that with less TV revenue and a gate limited by ballpark size that a team would nearly double its highest payroll and more than triple its current one over the next three seasons? Sure. Is it likely? Clearly not. As much as the A’s will save money by not bankrolling projects to assess where they’ll spend their future, the notion that the team will spend the next three years in a temporary location, without a big-league-caliber TV deal, with gate revenue limited by stadium size and somehow start to carry midlevel payroll necessitates a leap of faith not even the most ardent fan would take.
The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.
Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.
On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.
With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.
Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet
Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.
Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.
2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.
Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.
2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet
Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.
Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.
2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet
Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.
Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.
2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet
Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.
Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.
2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet
Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.
Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.
2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.
Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet
Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.
Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.
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