MLB commissioner Rob Manfred doubled down on some of last week’s comments regarding Oakland Athletics fans and the team’s possible relocation to Las Vegas on Friday.
While talking with the media at the Chicago Cubs’ and St. Louis Cardinals’ workout day ahead of their two-game London Series this weekend, Manfred also said that some of his much-criticized words about Athletics fans were taken out of context.
In discussing the franchise’s possible move, Manfred said (per ESPN’s Joon Lee) last week “The real question is, what is it Oakland was prepared to do? There is no Oakland offer. OK? They never got to a point where they had a plan to build a stadium at any site. And it’s not just John Fisher. The community has to provide support.”
Furthermore, in response to the Athletics fans’ recent reverse boycott which drew one of the biggest crowds of the season, the commissioner recently said it was “great.” Manfred added, perhaps facetiously, that it was “great to see what is this year almost an average Major League Baseball crowd in the facility for one night.”
The Nevada senate passed a bill in mid-June that would secure more than $380 million in public funding for a new stadium, but the future of the franchise still remains uncertain.
The Athletics remain buried at the bottom of the league in both the standings, with a 19-58 record, and home attendance, with a total of 368,146 and an average of 9,688 fans per game. The Miami Marlins are second to last in both total attendance (439,326) and average (11,561).
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