COMMENTARY
By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, June 26, 2014

On Wednesday, there was the first big news of the day for Bay Area baseball fans – Tim Lincecum’s no-hitter. The second bombshell came a little later, when Athletics owner Lew Wolff announced he’d reached an agreement to keep the A’s at the rapidly aging Oakland Coliseum for another 10 years.

The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority has yet to approve the deal, but, presumably, that’s just a formality. It’s either that, or the A’s start looking for a new home with a greater sense of urgency.

Initial reports didn’t indicate that the Authority will do any upgrading or repairs – the sewer system, for example – but, one would think the A’s wouldn’t agree to stay for that long if the city isn’t willing to do some necessary upgrading.

Commissioner Bud Selig, again expressed his support for Wolff, but wouldn’t go as far as saying where, exactly, a new ballpark should go. Wolff doesn’t like the idea of having a ballpark near Jack London Square, and has long desired a site somewhere in Silicon Valley or San Jose, allegedly considered “Giants territory.”

The A’s should not have to pay an indemnity fee to the Giants if they want to move 27 miles to the south. If they do, here’s a suggestion: MLB should collect $1 million from each of the other teams, cut the check to the Giants, and tell them, “This needs to happen. Here’s your extortion payment. Now shut up.”

The 10-year length of the lease is what’s most intriguing. It seems to indicate that Wolff is finding he needs a lot more time to solve his stadium issue than planned. It also seems to buy the City of Oakland some more time to come up with a solution to keep the A’s.

As for the condition of the Coliseum, this always happens when a city wants a new ball yard. All of a sudden, the sewers back up, the paint starts fading and peeling, the players’ accommodations are inadequate, the concession food and service begins to blow worse than usual, the lights don’t always work, etc.

This soap opera isn’t done yet. The NFL Raiders are in the final year of their lease at the Coliseum, which is now the only facility left that houses both pro baseball and football. If the Raiders want to build a new stadium on the present Coliseum site, will they now be able to?

Meanwhile, there’s no word yet on whether or not Roto Rooter is set to become a corporate sponsor for the A’s.

A’s VISIT MIAMI
The Athletics, who lead the AL West, had Thursday off and continue their swing through the National League East with a weekend set at Miami against the Marlins. Jesse Chavez (6-4) is on the hill Friday for Oakland, facing Anthony DeSclafani (1-2) for the Fish.