By Charlie O. Mallonee

Oakland: This commentary needs to be prefaced by a full disclosure. This writer is an Oakland Athletics fan. I was an A’s fan before I became involved in the sports broadcasting and writing realm. I attended my first Athletics’ game in 1971 (yes, I am old) at the Coliseum. It was easy to be an A’s fan back then. Heck, I even liked Charlie Finley!

I remained an A’s fan after the glory days of the team were over. I attended some games where you could learn  the names of everyone in the stadium. I was there for “Billy Ball” and the 1989 and 1990 World Series.

I have reported on A’s games since 1984. The Oakland A’s have been a major part of my life both professionally and as a committed fan of the game of baseball. So, when I ask when is Major League Baseball going to help the Oakland Athletics?, I ask it as sports reporter and a fan.

It will come as no surprise when I state that the Oakland Athletics need a new stadium. The once proud Coliseum is long in the tooth. The building lost its charm when “Mt. Davis” was built to accommodate the return of the Raiders. Even if the modifications had not been made to the facility, the building is old and tired. The A’s need their own Camden Yards, AT&T Park or Target Field.

The A’s first plan was to build a sports and entertainment complex in Fremont. That plan did not work out and the people of Oakland were angry that team was considering a move out of the city.

After the Fremont plan failed, the focus returned to Oakland. Jack London Square became the topic of discussion. The Jack London scenario sounded good but there were problems. Wind, lack of parking, no BART access and tight quarters. It became apparent very quickly that Jack London Square was going to be a difficult situation and the A’s ownership was not thrilled with the location.

The focus then turned to San Jose. It was a marriage made in heaven. San Jose wanted the A’s, and the A’s wanted San Jose.

A location near the SAP Center was identified as the location for the stadium. The plot is near the city center, light rail, Caltrain, Amtrak and two major freeways. It looked like the A’s had found a new home. But wait, there’s more.

Enter the San Francisco Giants.  The Giants said you cannot go to San Jose because that is our territory.

Indeed, MLB did grant the Giants territorial rights to San Clara County in 1990 when they were pursuing a new stadium in Santa Clara. The Athletics allowed the action because they did not see the Giants in Santa Clara as an “end of the world ” scenario.

When the Santa Clara stadium did not happen, the Giants turned back to San Francisco and AT&T was the result. After AT&T was built, the two teams once again shared the exact same borders … wrong! The Giants maintain that Santa Clara County/San Jose remains their exclusive territory. That is why fans from Oakland, Berkley, Walnut Creek, etc. cannot attend Giants games. Of course that is not true. If you live in the Bay Area, you can go see the Giants or the A’s whenever you want.

By the way, the territorial maps for the Yankees – Mets, the Cubs – White Sox and the Dodgers – Angels are exactly the same. Only the Giants and A’s have a divided territory in the same geographic location.

It is easy to understand why the Giants want the Athletics to stay out of Santa Clara County – better known as the Silicon Valley. It’s all about the bucks. The Giants are fearful that they may lose some “high tech dollars”.

It is true that the A’s in San Jose would siphon off some money, but the Giants are profitable, so profitable that they will rreportly pay off AT&T Park the end of the season. I am not suggesting that the Giants should limit their profits to accommodate the A’s. What I am suggesting is that the Giants are the number one baseball team in Northern California, and that fact would not change if the A’s moved to San Jose.

The situation is very similar to the other dual-team markets. The Yankees will always be more popular than the Mets. The Cubs are more popular than the White Sox. The Dodgers have more fans than the Angels. There is always a number one and a number two in the dual markets.

The Giants are the “alpha dog” in the Bay Area and Northern California. That will not change no matter where the A’s play.

It is also true that “high tech dollars” would flow to the A’s in San Jose, but it does not mean those dollars would stop flowing to the Giants. High tech companies will still want to be associated with the Giants, have boxes in the beautiful AT&T Park and have dinner on the Embaradero. The Giants are in San Francisco for heaven’s sake.

It’s time for Rob Manfred to bring the MLB, Giants and A’s together in order to settle this problem. To keep things as they are is bad for baseball and bad for the Bay Area.

A stadium in the city of Oakland is not an option. Oakland has too many pressing priorities to take care of before thinking about building stadiums. The Warriors are gone. The Raiders are as good as gone and the A’s cannot stay in the crumbling coliseum.

How can Major League Baseball solve this issue? This matter can be settled with money of course. Money will settle the matter because it’s all about the money. It is always about the money.

The commissioner needs to put together a “blue ribbon committee ” that would determine the value of the rights to Santa Clara County/ Silicon Valley. Then, MLB needs to work out a payment plan that would include money from the A’s and Major League Baseball (MLB created this problem; they should help pay to solve it).

There is a dollar figure that will satisfy the Giants. If that figure is not reasonable, then the MLB can vote to restore the Bay Area rights to the pre-1990 configuration. Yes, the Giants would sue. So? Businesses sue each other everyday. If the Giants take the MLB to court, it will ultimately result in a financial settlement. See, it is always about the money.

What is not acceptable is for the A’s to wind up in Montreal, Charlotte or New Orleans as a way to settle the issue. Oakland A’s fans have put millions of dollars in the pockets of Major League Baseball. It’s time for MLB to pay them back by settling this rights issue once and for all.

Rob Manfred – here is your chance to prove your leadership early in your tenure. It’s time for Major League Baseball to stand up and solve this problem … NOW! It’s time to help the A’s become the San Jose Athletics.