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MLB's Athletics won't have California's capital as part of team name despite playing in Sacramento until 2027
By Ryan Morik
Published November 05, 2024
The Athletics are officially just that.
After playing the previous 57 seasons in Oakland, the Athletics are now spending at least the next three years in Sacramento before their move to Las Vegas.
But, despite calling a new part of California home, the state's capital will not be reflected in the team's name – they will simply be known as "The Athletics."
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Oakland Athletics batting equipment during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. (Katie Stratman-USA Today Sports)
The move was teased when the Major League Baseball schedule was released over the summer, and the team was abbreviated to just ATH. Perhaps at the time, it was unknown whether they'd be deemed as the Sacramento A's or not.
According to Front Office Sports, the team issued "brand transition guidelines" this week, which included dropping a geographic location from the team name for the next three years.
More recently, teams have gone with a city name but no mascot (Washington Football Team, Utah Hockey Club, for example).
The Athletics began play in Philadelphia in 1901 before moving to Kansas City before the 1955 season. The organization had called Oakland home since 1968.
The Oakland Coliseum during the final game played by the Oakland Athletics in September. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
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They'll be playing at Sutter Health Park, which happens to be the home of their rival San Francisco Giants' Triple-A affiliate, the Sacramento River Cats, before their move to southern Nevada.
The Warriors, Raiders and A's all have left Oakland since 2020.
The move to Vegas has not been all sunshine and rainbows – the team wanted to begin playing there in 2027, but even the city's mayor said the team's plan to move there did "not make sense."
The Athletics signed a binding agreement to purchase 49 acres for a new ballpark, but had to switch their proposed land for the stadium after they found a new spot that required about $105 million less of public funding.
Fans of the Athletics in the right field bleachers during the San Francisco Giants game at RingCentral Coliseum on Aug. 5, 2023 in Oakland. (Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
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The new proposed site is where the now-demolished Tropicana once stood. The stadium will cost roughly $1.5 billion, and Bally's will build a new hotel/casino across from the stadium once it's completed.
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https://www.foxnews.com/sports/mlbs-athletics-wont-have-californias-capital-part-team-name-despite-playing-sacramento-until-2027