LAS VEGAS — There were the perfunctory speeches. There were the myriad thank yous uttered. There was a local youth baseball and softball presence which was a nice touch. And of course, what groundbreaking ceremony would not be complete without, well, breaking ground?
Monday morning was a busy one just off the Las Vegas Strip as the Athletics celebrated the launch of building their $1.75 billion, 33,000-seat ballpark on what used to stand the Tropicana Hotel and Casino. The A’s are taking up nine acres of the property’s 33 acres for their part of the project and after years of talk, we’re finally going to see some action.
The area has been prepped for weeks for the start of construction. On Monday, to the background music of John Fogerty’s baseball ballad “Centerfield” the ceremonial shovels hit the dirt and turned it over as green and gold confetti flew.
Now the heavy lifting literally begins. In the weeks and months ahead several thousand workers will be busy building Major League Baseball’s newest palace, one that commissioner Rob Manfred, who was at the groundbreaking ceremony, promises will be a haven for fans of the game from everywhere.
“I think the demographics, the success that other sports have had, and the amount of tourism here — those three legs of the stool make this an ideal market for us,” Manfred said. “I have no doubt this team will be successful here (in Las Vegas).”
The commissioner’s optimism was echoed everywhere. From A’s owner John Fisher, to Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo to Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority president Steve Hill and others. All are confident this will be an Aaron Judge-sized home run when its Opening Day in 2028.
Fisher, the embattled owner of the A’s who won over Manfred and the other 29 MLB owners to move from Oakland to Vegas with a stopover in West Sacramento, knows it’s up to him to deliver.
He knows that in planning the costs of building the new ballpark that he better account for inflation, tariffs on steel and other materials as well as things you can’t control, such as the weather and the economy.
“We have regular budget meetings that you would expect on a project like this,” Fisher said. “Things like tariffs we’ve been talking about for the last six months. So we’re prepared for whatever may happen in terms of material costs. We planned for that.”
It’s why Fisher has been finding funding in different areas to secure the financing for the project. It may be why he’s put the MLS San Jose Earthquakes up for sale, hoping it can fetch close to the Sportico valuation of $600 million. That would go a long way toward covering any cost overruns or dealing with inflation.
When asked if he believes the stadium will be ready for the 2028 season, Fisher said: “I do. There’s absolutely no reason we can’t get it done by then. We have and Mortenson and McCarthy. They’ve built lots of stadiums., They built Allegiant (Stadium). They know how to get the stadium built and the timeline to make it happen.”
To that end, Marc Badain becomes the most important person the A’s will have to see to it that Fisher is right.
His name should send familiar if you’re a Raiders fan. He helped facilitate the NFL team’s move from Oakland to Las Vegas and oversaw the construction of Allegiant Stadium. Badain was recently involved with the Oak View Group’s plans to build an arena and hotel with the express purpose of bringing an NBA expansion franchise to Las Vegas. Instead, he moved on to join the A’s in early March as team president, replacing David Kaval, who had done the majority of the legwork in the A’s leaving Oakland.
“I have no doubt this will get done by 2028,” Badain said. “You know the workforce here. I saw the plans, I looked at the financing for the project and it made sense to me. That’s why I’m here.”
Badain’s familiarity with Nevada and its elected officials and politics have him well prepared for this project.
“I’m constantly impressed with the government officials in this town and this state,” he said. “Governor Lombardo and I have known each other for about 10 years and he likes to make fun of me and I’m happy to take that ribbing.”
That Badain managed to get the Raiders move and Allegiant Stadium opened despite a global pandemic should justify the faith Fisher has in him. That he knows all the players, both in government and with the labor force along with the construction companies involved makes me believes that he’ll get the ballpark open on time.
And yes, it’s going to be a hell of a place to watch a game. It may not be a lot of fun trying to get there if you are not already on the Strip, but that’s another story for down the road.
At that point, Fisher will hopefully have a winning ball club on the field. I’ve said it several times and it bears repeating, for this to work long-term, the Athletics need to be successful between the lines. Yes, the A’s have some good pieces for manager Mark Kotsay to work with. Yes, Fisher has spent money this year on free agents, most notably pitcher Luis Severino (three years, $67 million) but that hasn’t worked out great so far given Severino’s numbers — 16 appearances, a 2-7 record and a 4.42 ERA.
But the reality is the A’s are a last-place ball club playing in a minor league ballpark and at the moment, are not really competitive. Now a lot can happen in three years’ time and Fisher is betting on that. He’s hoping that come 2028 the A’s will be long gone from the cellar and being a competitive force in the American League, not just in the AL West.
So while Monday was a nice day, an historic day in Las Vegas, let’s remember the first thing we were taught when we first started playing baseball. No, not the lyrics to “Take Me Out To The Ballgame.” That was the second thing. The first thing was “Keep your eye on the ball.”
Let’s keep our eye on Fisher and the A’s going forward. He’ll likely deliver on the ballpark. But will he deliver on a winning ball club that will call it home?