Updated 11:16 a.m.
The Oakland A’s will play in West Sacramento for three years starting in 2025, the team announced Thursday.
The team, which is in the process of moving from the Bay Area to Las Vegas, will play at Sutter Health Park, the home of the Sacramento RiverCats.
“When I bought the Kings over 10 years ago, I said that Sacramento would never play second fiddle to any other city in the world,” Sacramento Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadivé, who also owns the RiverCats, said at a press conference Thursday at the ballpark. “And the success of Golden 1 Center has proven this region can be a mecca for sports. Today’s announcement marks the next chapter of professional sports in Sacramento.”
The A’s needed to find a temporary home as their lease on the Oakland Coliseum expires after this season and their Las Vegas ballpark isn’t expected to open until 2028. The temporary move to West Sacramento includes an option for a fourth year.
Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento will host the A’s for the 2025-27 seasons – ahead of the team’s move to Vegas in 2028. pic.twitter.com/KryyjzpLMl
— Oakland A’s (@Athletics) April 4, 2024
The move has been contentious, with fans calling on owner John Fisher to sell the team instead of moving from Oakland, where the team has played since 1968. Many fans boycotted the team’s home opener this week, instead holding a rally in the stadium parking lot to protest the move.
Eireann Dolan, a former host for CSN California who is married to retired A’s pitcher Sean Doolittle, called the move “heartbreaking for Oakland fans” on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“[It’s] shameful that the org did this in a way that seems to have maximized the pain and disrespect to the fans who have shown them nothing but loyalty for generations,” Dolan wrote.
On Thursday, Fisher called the move to West Sacramento “a momentous day for this community and our 123-year-old franchise.”
“We’re excited to be here for the next three years, playing in this beautiful ballpark but also being able to watch some of the greatest players in baseball, whether they be Athletics players or Aaron Judge and others launch home runs out of this very intimate — the most intimate — ballpark in Major League Baseball, for the next three years,” Fisher said.
The RiverCats, the AAA affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, will continue to play at Sutter Health Park. The minor league stadium has a capacity of around 14,000 including lawn seating.
The team on Thursday said it “will ensure that the ballpark will continue to be modified to meet MLB standards, including upgrading LED lighting and adding an additional clubhouse, among other items.”
The A’s had been in negotiation with the city of Oakland in recent weeks on a possible lease agreement to remain in the Coliseum until moving to Las Vegas.
“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 wrote in a statement Thursday morning. “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.”
In a statement, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said the city will now focus efforts on redeveloping the Coliseum area.
“Oakland offered a deal that was fair to the A’s and ws fiscally responsible for the city,” Thao wrote in a statement. “We wish the A’s the best and will continue our conversations with them on facilitating the sale of the Coliseum site.”
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said the move has prompted “conflicting emotions.”
“Oakland is a great city that rightfully deserves professional sports, including Major League Baseball,” he said in a statement on Thursday morning. “As Mayor of Sacramento I am over the moon for my city, our region and our state. Today’s announcement will give Sacramento a historic opportunity to once again showcase why we are one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic cities in the country.”
Ranadivé, who helped keep the Kings in Sacramento after purchasing the franchise in 2013, said hosting the A’s the next three years could help show the region is ready for another top-level sports franchise.
“We have a tremendous opportunity to showcase everything the region has to offer and demonstrate why it is deserving of an MLB team,” he said. “This is an exciting time to be a sports fan in Sacramento and I know the community will welcome the team here with open arms.”
Ticketing information will be released later this summer after the 2025 schedule is finalized. A’s season ticket holders will get first priority on seats followed by RiverCats season ticket holders, according to the team. The teams said Thursday that more information will be available at SutterHealthPark.com/Athletics.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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