Author: lleonardbw

49ers report: Niners getting good deal for Harbaugh’s labor might talk turkey after season

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by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA–San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh is in the fourth year of a five year deal that pays $5 million per year it’s considered a really strong deal for a rookie coach in the NFL. Harbaugh had quite a bit of success since coming from the college ranks and from Stanford. If Harbaugh was to go on the free agent market and the fact that he made three consecutive NFC Championships and got into the Super Bowl in his first season as head coach something that nobody’s done he would be getting a lot more than $5 million a year.

The fair maket value for someone like Harbaugh is that’s he’s underpaid and they didn’t know they were underpaying him when he signed that five year contract and he wasn’t going to Cleveland even though they were intrested in him in the off season and the Browns expressed they would pay him his worth. Harbaugh stayed with the Niners.

Every stop he’s made in his college coaching career like the University of San Diego, Stanford and now in the NFL with the Niners he’s been incredibly successful he turned around the programs in San Diego and Stanford and he did the same thing at the 49ers. He has took the team to three championships plus the Super Bowl.

As far as getting paid, in the NFL head coaches have a tendency to be under paid right now the highest paid head coach in the NFL is the New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick at $45 million for seven years and the Seattle Seahawks Pete Carroll who signed a new deal back in April with the Hawks worth $35 million for five years. If Harbaugh was to sign a new deal it probably will be around that Bilichick pay scale.

As far as the 2014-15 season is concerned there’s no reason to go crazy and try and negotiate a new contract as he’s under contract for two more seasons and Harbaugh is not going anywhere. A lot of that talk in the off season about going to Cleveland was a red hering and the Niners are not too worried about that. If your Harbaugh he might wait until the end of next season to talk with the team about his next contract in the off season.

Let’s face it Harbaugh has the resume he’s got the three championships and took the team to the Super Bowl in his first season as head coach at the 49ers. Harbaugh in terms of negotiations in the future he has the Niners over a barrel and the 49ers recognize how good a head coach that Harbaugh is and he doesn’t want to push it and maybe they’ll talk about it after this season.

Right now Hargaugh is getting $5 million a year and he’s getting underpaid and as far as negotiating under these same type of circumstances this has been the motivation of the 49ers organization in a lot of situations. The 49ers don’t want to talk turkey with Harbaugh and Harbaugh is fine with it and the 49ers should make post season and there’s no reason to think they’re going to collapse and Harbaugh should successfully get what he wants.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

A’s and Giants commentary: A’s would like to see run production unlike 1-0 Fri loss;Cain set for surgery for bone chips

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by Michael Duca

OAKLAND–In Friday’s 1-0 shutout there were a lot of pitches that were spoiled that weren’t hit like 70 of them, seven-zero, a few of those pitches could have landed in the stands and could have been hit off the great pitching of Royals starter Jeremy Gutherie. A’s starter Sonny Grey pitched well enough to win but your never going to win a game if your team can’t score.

The A’s will miss Yoenis Cepedes because when he would run into a ball it would turn into instant runs, the truth is if you look at Cepedes’ numbers the best year he had was his rookie season his offensive production was on a steady decline since his first year, his on base percentage was below average this season, and that’s not a Billy Beane (A’s general manager) type player.

Beane wants guys who will work the count, take some pitches, and someone who can make the opposing bullpen work hard to try and get someone out, Beane’s idea of game success is not a 1-0 three hour loss. The A’s would like to win these games but that doesn’t always happen. The long at bat usually don’t go in the hitters favor it goes in the pitchers favor.

It seems to be more physcological than actual and Cepedes doesn’t seem like he can give you 150 games per year, the team is going to get some injuries and it’s questionable if he was producing (.256, 17 homers, 67 RBIs) in games rather than home run derbys at the level that people think he was and at the level the A’s were paying him.

SF Giants update: Regarding pitcher Matt Cain’s bone chip surgery is relatively benign if you remember correctly former Giants infielder Rich Aurilla was out after surgery for six week. Obviously each player reacts differently according to each surgery and this isn’t something you take in a cavilier fashion. All things being equal when your big horse is down which Cain is with the elbow the last thing you want to hear is surgery.

When you do hear the word surgery and you hear it’s bone chips you could recover from it, it’s not a one year rehab like Tommy John surgery is. Having bone chips is not going to cause permanent damage to the elbow. So if he guts out the pain and misses some of the season he will rest and come back in September and get him a roster spot and stretch him out a little.

Cain could get six or seven days spot starting him and have him available to a post season spot if the Giants make it that far. On the other hand what it should do everybody is looking at this thing saying “oh my God” the Giants opening day starter for a number of years has gone down with an elbow injury “oh dear oh dear whatever will we do.”

Cain is out but it’s not like he died he’s still a presence in the Giants clubhouse, he’s there he’s in the clubhouse he’s around the team, you can find him, but whatever he’s a non physical presence in the rotation. In terms of the rotation they only missed him for only one turn, he’s done a credible job in the one turn that he pitched and then they replaced him with Jake Peavy whose able as Cain and is a disciplined pitcher.

Michael Duca does commentary on the A’s and Giants each week for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Cespedes refusal to play center main factor for trade to Boston

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

ANAHEM–Nobody that follows the game should be surprised by Athletics Genral Manager Billy Beane dealing A’s outfielder Yoenis Céspedes to the Boston Red Sox for three-time All Star lefhander Jon Lester. On that same deal, the Oakland A’s also get popular outfielder Jonny Gomes (Petaluma’s own) who played for the A’s in 2012.

After 2015 Céspedes can be a Free Agent, and the A’s were probably not ready to give the two-time Homerun Derby Champ a lucrative deal, so Céspedes (.256 17 Homeruns 67 runs batted in) value was high and the reigning World Champion Boston Red Sox, today living in the cellar of the American League East, took Billy Beane’s deal without a problem.

Remember, Lester said he would not mind going back to Boston after this season) so this could be a two-month rental, and one that could bring a World Series Championship to Oakland, the first since 1989. It could also backfire for Billy, but such are the risk General Managers take when they wheel and deal.By-the-way in that same deal, the A’s received cash from the Red Sox.

More action today, the A’s traded left hander pitcher Tommy Milone (27 years old) 6-3 with a 3.55 earned run average) somebody that the lowly Twins can insert right away in their rotation.

It is only poetic that this Saturday the Athletics have “La Potencia”T-Shirt promotion at the Oakland Coliseum. “La Potencia”is what they called Yoenis Céspedes in Cuba prior to his defecting to the US. First time I interview the Cuban-born star was during his first season as he got ready to put the A’s uniform on in Spring Training, in Phoenix, Arizona. I will never forget that moment, his locker was next to that of Bartolo Colón, and Céspedes was ready to take the field for practice with his glove that sported a Cuban flag on it.

Céspedes was a good player for the A’s, recently he told manager Bob Melvin he didn’t want to play center-field, Colón was not re-signed by the A’s after he won 18 games and wanted a two-year deal, one that the Mets gave him. Colón is also a pitcher that many teams have talked to the Mets about. At 41 the man throws nothing but strikes and even with the Mets (not a good team) has a very good number. Both Colón and Céspedes were part of A’s history.

Yoenis Céspedes was the most exciting player the A’s have had during the past few seasons, but baseball is a business and nobody does that better than A’s General Manager Billy Beane. So I wish the A’s good luck and hope the deal works for the team. Coco Crisp continues with his neck problems, Craig Gentry who was signed as a fourth outfielder is out with a broken hand, Céspedes didn’t wanted to play centerfield recently in Houston.

Melvin said he doesn’t know when Crisp will return to the lineup. … left fielder Yoenis Cespedes told him that he didn’t want to move to center field. … outfield, Brandon Moss is not a candidate to play center field, Melvin

Adiós Yoenis!

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsrradioservice.com

Bears report: Dykes admits team needs spurcing up on offense; reports GPAs much better

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by Ralph Gora

SANTA CLARA–The one thing that was discussed at Wednesday’s college coaches luncheon at Levi’s Stadium that the Cal Bears player athletes scores were much better. That was something confirmed by the head coach Sonny Dykes. Dykes also admitted the Bears had a tough year last season going 1-12 but look to turn things around in 2014.

“We have tremendous optimism as we start on Sunday and look forward to moving on our program, we talk about this last year about the small battles that we won and what they meant to us” Dykes said. Dykes said that there are things that need to be worked on during camp that will impact the future of the program at Cal.

Dykes said that the Bears need to believe in themselves and said that last season brought some pretty adverse situations especially considering that the team won only one game in 2013 with not a lot wins on the field. The optimism on the club has continued and Dykes said it’s carried from early spring to this summer.

Dykes is happy with the team’s hard work in camp thus far and he’s been please with the players attitude and what they’ve brought to camp. Dykes is excited about what he’s seen with the team since last fall and feels that the Bears have a chance to build for this season and looks forward to be involved in a program that the school could be proud of.

The student athletes have improved in the classroom in what was an issue, Dykes said that the team has addressed this with the team and told the players that improvement on their grades need to have the utmost action taken and that it’s paying off for the Bears in the classroom. Dykes said that the players have raised their APR from a 922 to 969 from last year and that was a tremendous jump.

The grade scores have placed Cal in the middle of the Pac 12 Conference and Dykes said there is still work to be done as he is pushing for the school to be at the top. Dykes feels with that number the school can only get better and better with improvement and Dykes said he’s excited that that grade average number is only going to increase for his players.

Ralph Gora covered the Cal Bears at the college coaches luncheon at Levis Stadium on Wednesday for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mark Davis says Raiders could bolt for San Antonio football team not happy with A’s lease

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by Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon

ALAMEDA–The Oakland Raiders said before signing a ten year lease with the Oakland Coliseum they wanted the stadium torn down and a new one built in it’s footprint and ready to go by 2016 just before the City Council approved the Oakland A’s lease. The Raiders owner Mark Davis in response to the signing of the lease and the Coliseum very unlikely to be torn down said the Raiders could move to San Antonio on Tuesday.

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to approve the A’s ten year lease after the City Council approved it last week and that was the last straw for Davis as he said the Raiders could leave very soon. With a “possible relocation of (Davis’)NFL team to San Antonio” according to San Antonio City manager Sheryl Scully.

Ironically the A’s had said that they would move to San Antonio or Montreal if the Oakland City Council refused to approve the ten year lease. If the A’s had gone to Texas they would have to play at Alamo Stadium where the short porch in left field is well under 300 feet. The Raiders could play at Alamo Stadium if they so choose to get out of the Coliseum.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan who panicked to get the City Council to sign the lease before the A’s would move now is under pressure to try and save another franchise. The Raiders who want the Coliseum torn down and a new stadium built and ready by the 2016 season. Quan who said she wanted the Coliseum Complex to be a sports village for the Raiders and A’s particularly after the Warriors move out of Oracle Arena for their new digs in San Francisco’s Mission Bay.

According to wire reports Davis met with San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros, former mayor Julian Castro, Shelly, San Antonio Economic Foundation’s Mario Perez, Richard Hernandez and David McGee who is the president of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. Critics who were following the discussion with Davis and San Antonio officials think that the Raiders won’t move and that this whole thing about moving is a bluff so the city would build the Raiders a new stadium, but never say never.

Davis and the Raiders organization is not too pleased with the City Council’s decision to keep the A’s at the Coliseum for ten years and getting by passed as a main tenant. The Raiders feeling shunned will seriously take a look at San Antonio and see what their stadium aspirations will be. The Raiders moved back in 1995 from L.A. after leaving Oakland in 1982 came back.

The Raiders who are in camp right now in Napa plan to review this a little closer this time because the Raiders feel their going to get nowhere with the City of Oakland. San Antonio’s history for professional sports franchises have been the San Antonio Spurs who started out in the ABA in 1970s then moved over to the NBA. San Antonio also was in the USFL for two years with the Gunsligers 1984 and 1985 for San Antonio’s only two times in the show.

Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon are covering the 2014 Oakland Raiders for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Levis stadium now the latest rage;Alameda County Supervisors concur vote to approve A’s ten year lease

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

ANAHEIM–The new Levis Stadium in Santa Clara bodes well for South Bay the reason being they are already a major league county with the San Jose Sharks who was founded in San Jose and they’ve played in San Jose since 1993. Now the South Bay has the San Francisco 49ers and my point on all this, this is all good.

You can publicize this, they should tell the world that the San Francisco 49ers have a new stadium a state of the art stadium a beautiful park a $1 billion park in Santa Clara. Why do I say this? For years now the media and everybody have concentrated on the story that the Oakland A’s are moving to San Jose. San Jose wants to be a Major League city.

Well the A’s don’t look like their going to be moving to San Jose, and they signed a lease in Oakland and Alameda County Supervisors voted on Tuesday to approve the lease agreement keeping the A’s at the Oakland Coliseum until 2024. The lease was approved by the Oakland City Council last week and needed approval by the County supervisors Tuesday.

The 49ers the most lucurative franchise and a team that has won more Super Bowls than any other NFL team are going to be playing in Santa Clara. The San Francisco 49ers are going to be playing in Santa Clara, so this is a huge benefit for the South Bay. This is the most lucrative sports league in America which is the National Football Leauge.

The 49ers are most top of the line franchise with the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and the Green Bay Packers and those types of teams. This is good for the South Bay and the 49ers of San Francisco are not going to be playing in San Francisco they’re going to be playing in the South Bay. This is a good story, I agree 1000 per cent that the South Bay can boast that they can tell the whole world that they have the 49ers San Jose-Santa Clara is the largest city and county in the Bay Area with over one million people.

The past rages of stadiums used to be San Jose Arena when it was first built in 1993, then there was AT&T Park in San Francisco and now the newest rage is Levis Stadium. The Bay Area is very trendy and Levis Stadium is now the place to be. There was a time that Oracle Arena when the Warriors played there was the place to be when the team first move there in 1971 after moving from the Cow Palace in Daly City.

There were big stars in attendance and there were celebrities showing up there in attendance and the Warriors would play the Lakers with Kareem Abdul Jabbar. I also remember Nate Thurmond on the Warriors and all those guys. So at one time Oracle Arena was trendy, now the 49ers are going to be trendy with their new Stadium in Santa Clara.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish TV voice for Angels baseball and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings arena downtown: Kings to begin construction on new arena groundbreaking in coming weeks

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by Jerry Feitelberg

SACRAMENTO–Sacramento Superior Court Judge Timothy Frawley made his second major ruling in favor of the Sacramento Kings to start construction on their new arena at Downtown Plaza. The construction was about to face a delay after a recent lawsuit filed by foes opposed to the arena claiming that the new arena would be an act of gentrification and would displace many single occupancy hotel residents in downtown Sacramento.

The ruling by Frawley would clear a path for the arena to start construction but also would force those single occupants to move from their homes in hotels that they stayed in for decades to make way for new buildings in the neighborhood. The foes who learned of their lawsuit loss on Friday had filed the suit under the California Environmental Quality Act. The opposition said that traffic, noise, and pollution issues amongst other complaints were reasons for the suit to get a injunction to block the start of construction for the Kings arena.

Frawley back in Febuary in his first ruling against another opposition group who wanted to place an initiative on last June’s ballot saying that voters should have a vote on whether public funds and building a new arena should be allowed to go forward. The opposition group in this attempt found that that they were caught in a political triangle which went back to Hedge Fund manager Chris Hansen who tried to buy the Kings and move them to Seattle.

Hansen later admitted being behind funding the campaign to put the arena initiative on the ballot. Frawley ruled that the legal language in the initiative was flawed and that the Sacramento Registar of Voters found many discrepancies of unregistared voters who signed documents to get the initiative on the ballot and legal flaws in the language of the ballots were stained. At the time Mayor Kevin Johnson said “I can smell the stench off those ballots” regarding the initiative push.

The opponents lawyer Kelly Smith said in Sacramento Superior Court on Friday to Frawley that the bill that protects new arena projects such as the Kings arena proposal is unconstitutional. The bill was sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg that give teeth to any arena proposal and that any lawsuit trying to block it’s construction could only be successful in the event of a health and saftey issue or if American Native artifacts are threatened.

The state initiative SB743 was signed by California Governor Jerry Brown that stops CEQA lawsuits from injunctions. Opposition after opposition group tried everything to try and halt the construction of the new arena and Frawley had played a key role in ruling in favor of the new arena with stopping some major lawsuits against it’s construction.

The project was originally scheduled to breakground this week but after this latest lawsuit filed the groundbreaking will be recheduled. The Kings new arena is expected to be completed and ready for the NBA season in 2017. The Kings will spend $222 million for their share on the arena project and the city will spend $255 million. The opponents had objected to the city’s use of public subsidies and the use of public parking lots owned by the city to pay back the money barrowed from the general fund another suit that was overruled. Opponents said that the money should have been used towards the arts rather than building a new arena for the Kings.

Jerry Feitelberg is covering the new arena developments for the Sacramento Kings and the Golden State Warriors for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers report: Aldon Smith slated to meet Commissioner Goodell over charges

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by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA–San Francisco 49ers star pass rusher Aldon Smith is scheduled to meet with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell regarding possible disciplinary action. The meeting could happen as soon as next week in New York. Goodell has made it a practice to meet with players before handing down any discipline and Smith will be no different as he will be answering a number of questions pertaining to his latest legal problems.

Smith was given an 11 days work release from Santa Clara County court regarding his September 2013 arrest for drunken driving, it was Smith’s second arrest since joining the NFL in 2011. The big issue that Goodell and Smith will be discussing is the gun charges against Smith. Each of those three charges will be reduced to misdemeanor charges from the original felony charges.

Smith had also sought substance abuse program help after a game in London in October last season the Commissioner was satisfied with Smith’s approach towards tackling the problem of substance abuse. The real kicker to Smith’s problems came when he was at the Los Angeles International Airport on an alledged bomb threat at the security screening area of the airport. The Los Angeles City Attorney refused to press charges. Smith is scheduled to meet LA city officals on July 30th to close the case.

On the gun possesion charges he could go to jail for awhile but Smith’s attorneys worked out some kind of a deal and Smith went on a work release prograam for 12 consecutive Mondays. It just so happens that the 49ers are off for 12 consecutive Mondays during the regular season and they play one Sunday night game so you have to come to the conclusion that there was some kind of deal made.

As far as his meeting with Goodell there is a chance that he could be suspended for a handful of games approximently for two to four games. There is always a chance that he could get zero games but Goodell has been going after players for bad behavior. The incident with TSA at LAX might be something that Goodell might take in serious consideration and can’t see letting Smith off the hook for that one.

Two games sounds about right but we’ll see, Goodell is expected to make that decision sometime before the 49ers first pre season game against Baltimore on August 7th. As far as Smith’s improvement the 49ers have to hope that Smith is making progress on his substance abuse problems. The team and the league wants to see him get better in the process. In football in situations like this some players get better and sometimes players don’t get better at all.

There have been a few players in football that have flamed out because of substance abuse problems and it might be alcohol and some players have been able to overcome that. The team plans to work with Smith and do anything to make him better. The team could insulate him and also Smith will face the consequences and he’s starting to face some of those consequences right now until he cleans up his act. So for now the 49ers will wait to see what the fate of Smith will be it’s in the hands of Goodell next week.

David Zizmor is covering 49ers football for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

A’s and Giants commentary with Michael Duca: Astros trying to make some noise on A’s during series;Giants Lincecum and those late inning closing calls

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by Michael Duca

OAKLAND–The Houston Astros who are in Oakland this week have been playing better as of late and after getting the number one draft pick three years in a row although it didn’t seem to help them much in this third year they were unable to sign their number one pick in the draft. Having won one two years in a row is only going to help turn this franchise around.

The Astros are a solid up and coming team with a pretty good farm system right now on Tuesday night if you were a baseball fan that had to be your favorite night of the year between the Giants and the A’s they gave you 26 innings of baseball where San Francisco played 14 and the A’s went 12.

The Astros L.J. Hoes gave A’s pitcher Francisco Abad the game loss with Hoes third homer of the year in the 12th inning for the 3-2 win. The game didn’t end the way manager Bob Melvin and the A’s wanted it to end. Hoes decided that he saw enough of his share of 14 inning baseball as the Astros went 14 in New York, Philadelphia, and in Oakland he decided that he wanted to go home a little earlier.

This is a franchise that wants to snap the habit of being a losing team, the Astros are 19.5 games out of first place and occupy fourth place in the American League West. The time that a young franchise has it’s best opportunity really gains some confidence and right now their going against the best team in the Majors. Right now it’s a real dogfight Between the A’s and Angels just like in the National League West with the dogfight between the Giants and the Dodgers.

San Francisco Giants update: Thats one way to celebrate as the Giants took starting pitcher Tim Lincecum in a laundry hamper and doused him with beer on Tuesday night after he chalked up a save for the Giants over the Philadelphia Phillies in a 9-6 win in the closing role. This was Lincecum’s first ever save and this really tells you about the team. Manger Bruce Bochy’s bullpen would have neither been in this one yesterday or today and he decided to push it back on Tuesday just in case they needed Timmy in the 14th inning and they did.

Had the Giants not taken the lead then you would have seen something really mind boggling you would have seen outfielder Tyler Colvin in relief and pitcher Ryan Voglesong was ready to go out to rightfield in Colvin’s spot while switching between right and pitching. It’s an interesting situation for Lincecum usually finding his rythm and throwing strikes in the first inning, he’s given up more first inning runs than any other inning this year.

So Lincecum not only came into the 14th inning Tuesday night cold but he came in the game with runners in scoring position and talk about adapting to the closers mentality Lincecum was irriated with himself and he inherited a runner to score. When you got a four run lead and two guys on your more than happy to trade an out for a run all day because the Phils can’t score enough runs then they can make outs.

By the 14th inning on Tuesday Giants pitcher Madison Baumgarner had his spikes on and he was ready to hit and Vogelsong had his spikes on and he was ready to go out and play in the outfield. Pitcher Tim Hudson had gone in with his spikes and he was ready to hit and do whatever he could. There’s one of the thing about a game like this, to get a game like this with all 25 guys contributing they need to contribute actively, they need to contribute by getting the team ready. It helps the team bond.

Michael Duca does Giants and A’s commentary on http://www.sportsradioservice.com each week

A’s land a handshake with city, pay only $2 million per year on new ten year lease worth $20 M

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by Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–After 14 months of debating, going back and forth on costs, out clauses, and the threat of tearing down the Oakland Coliseum if the Raiders wish it so, the Oakland A’s ownership have inked a ten year deal with the City of Oakland worth $20 million.

The A’s out clause could come as soon as 2017 if they wanted to move out of Oakland but the team would be obligated for the remaining balance of the lease. The Coliseum which is managed by the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum Authority. A’s owner Lew Wolff said that he accepted most of the changes of the lease agreement despite some of the particulars that the A’s might have disagreed upon with the city.

Wolff told Oakland City Administrator Henry Gardner that he intends to build a new stadium at the Coliseum and Wolff told the city that the A’s have good faith intentions of building at the Coliseum Complex. The Raiders have expressed an interest in tearing down the Coliseum by 2016 for a new Raiders stadium but with the A’s new lease signed by the city and the team that might cloud the Raiders plans.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has said she wants to revisit the Raiders wishes and make both teams happy by building stadiums for the Raiders and A’s side by side. The Golden State Warriors who are moving to San Francisco’s Mission Bay will vacate the Coliseum Arena after the Warriors new arena is completed. The schedule on the drawing board could have the A’s and Raiders build near or in the footprint of the Coliseum Arena if the city choses to tear down the Oracle Arena as soon the Warriors vacate Oracle.

The A’s and Wolff who made it their dream to play in San Jose and build a new stadium near the downtown Cal Train station and SAP Center fizzled over the years of discussion as the A’s came to the realization that San Francisco Giants will never reliquish terriorial rights. The City of San Jose had filed a lawsuit against Major League Baseball to try and force baseball to drop the territorial rights but the case is a stalemate.

The vote to approve the lease goes in front of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and Wolff sounded confident that everything is moving to plan, “it looks like we have a mutually agreeable lease transaction that will be subject to the vote of the board of supervisors” said Wolff. Talk of a Howard Street Waterfront ballpark for the A’s at Jack London Square was never in the cards for the A’s according to Wolff he wants to make the A’s home at the current Coliseum site with a brand new state of the art stadium, “we look forward to moving on and talking about the bigger goal building a beautiful new ballpark for the team right here in Oakland” said Quan

The deal now will go in front of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors for next week’s vote and it is expected to pass with a lot less fanfare than when it was in front of the Oakland City Council which mulled over it for 14 months with the team. It must be noted that the proposal might go in front of the Coliseum Authority again because of the revisions in the lease. Oakland City Councilman Larry Reid who opposed the original lease particulars is happy that a deal was struck and that Wolff and the A’s can get on with business as usual.

Jerry Feitelberg is covering A’s baseball for http://www.sportsradioservice.com