A group of business leaders and prominent political figures is backing a new proposal to build a $500 million waterfront stadium for the Oakland A's, as Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross of the San Francisco Chronicle report.
The project is headed up by Clorox chairman and CEO Don Knauss, former Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream boss T. Gary Rogers and Oakland Mayor Jean Quan. The mayor in particular is highly optimistic about the proposed site, as she explained to the Chronicle: “Trust me, Oakland is hot now, and a lot of developers would love that [waterfront] site if it doesn't become a baseball stadium.”
A ...
Former Oakland Athletic Jemile Weeks recently sat down to talk about his upcoming community event, Christmas on the Boulevard, which takes place Dec. 21 in Eatonville, Fla. Afterward, he took some time to discuss being traded to the Baltimore Orioles.
The A's traded Weeks and minor-league catcher David Freitas for closer Jim Johnson on Dec. 3.
In Johnson, Oakland maintains a stout bullpen and efficiently replaces Grant Balfour. The Orioles meanwhile are thought to have made the move to shed Johnson's $10 million-plus contract.
In talking about the trade, Weeks provided some insight into what it's like as a player—hearing the news, the ...
Billy Beane has been busy this offseason.
The usually stagnant general manager made a flurry of moves during the 2013 winter meetings, leaving the Oakland A's in prime position to make another run for the AL West title in 2014.
This offseason, Beane appeared intent on filling every hole on the A’s roster. Oakland badly needed an additional infielder; they brought on veteran Nick Punto. They needed a closer to replace Grant Balfour; enter Jim Johnson. In fact, despite it being only the middle of December, the A’s essentially have their 25-man roster ready to go for the season. Here is ...
Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane waited until late into the second day of Major League Baseball's 2013 Winter Meetings to finally make a move. But once he did, he struck quickly.
First, he traded starting pitcher Brett Anderson to the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday for pitchers Drew Pomeranz and Chris Jensen. A day later, he surprised many by sending reliever Jerry Blevins to the Washington Nationals for minor league outfielder Billy Burns.
Neither move seems to have impressed fans very much.
Additionally, former Oakland A's pitcher and last season's ace Bartolo Colon officially signed with the New York Mets, and minor league catcher ...
It may be the MLB offseason, but former Oakland Athletic Jemile Weeks is hard at work in the Orlando, Fla. community he calls home.
While other players are resting comfortably, Weeks—recently traded to the Baltimore Orioles—decided to give his time to others. In conjunction with the town of Eatonville, Fla., Weeks' charity organization WeFam LLC will host "Christmas on the Boulevard."
From 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Saturday December 21, residents of Eatonville and members of the surrounding communities are invited to attend Robert Hungerford Prep High School for an afternoon of activities that includes meet and greets with Weeks ...
When it comes to evaluating wheeling and dealing around Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane, few steadfast rules apply to the discussion.
Days after trading for relief pitchers Jim Johnson and Luke Gregerson and outfielder Craig Gentry, clearly indicating an all-in approach to winning big in 2014, another trade rumor emerged involving a Beane player. This time, per Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, a major contributor was rumored to be exiting Oakland.
Any discussion involving Yoenis Cespedes will cause a stir, especially within the context of the moves made by Oakland earlier in the week. If the A's are truly interested in ...
In the last 48 hours, the Oakland A's have been quite active, setting themselves up nicely to finally advance past the American League Division Series for only the second time since Billy Beane became general manager.
The A's official website has the scoop on the Dec. 2 wheelings and dealings. Oakland signed veteran pitcher Scott Kazmir, via Jane Lee/MLB.com, and then later the same day, the team swapped Jemile Weeks for All-Star closer Jim Johnson (also via Lee). Less than 24 hours later, Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Texas Rangers sent outfielder Craig Gentry and pitcher Josh Lindblom to Oakland in ...
For the first time in a while there isn't "50 feet of crap" between everyone else and Oakland.
Also, for the first time since anybody can remember, the Oakland A's seem to be making some serious moves this offseason.
And for the first time in a long time, the A's may gives fans reason to again scream the famous phrase of late A's announcer Bill King, "Holy Toledo!"
Yes, the same Oakland Athletics who were seen as merely a Triple-A team from 2007-11, finishing four of those five seasons with sub-.500 records, who have won the American League West pennant the last two ...
Ideally, the team would sign a superstar free agent. Or trade for one.
The A's don't typically make major splashes via trades, unless of course it's shipping their own starters away for prospects two or three years away from the majors. Though trades for big-ticket players have happened (see Holliday, Matt). And that's exactly what they need to do in order to take the next step. The St. Louis Cardinals made upgrades; so did the Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers.
Near-contenders are upgrading weaknesses. The A's must do the same—at these positions.
Second Base
Yes, it is a weakness still. Punto is not an ...
The acquisition of Nick Punto sparked a few rumors surrounding other members of the Oakland A's infield. Add to it plenty of talk regarding the starting rotation, and it can be tricky determining which will come into fruition and which is just plain false.
Is Alberto Callaspo on his way out now with a crowded infield? Is Jed Lowrie the missing piece for the St. Louis Cardinals? Will the A's sign a power bat? Or will they spend the money on a veteran starting pitcher?
There are five major rumors floating around the Web. Here's a look into each of them with ...