SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Athletics will make Sutter Health Park their temporary home for a few years before moving to Las Vegas.
Representatives with the A's announced Thursday the team will be playing in West Sacramento for the next three MLB seasons starting in 2025 as the lease at the Oakland Coliseum expires after the 2024 season. There's also an option for a fourth season.
"We're excited to be here for the next three years playing at 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 baseball, for the next three years," said A's Owner and Managing Partner John Fisher at a press conference Thursday.
The A's were in discussions with the city of Oakland and Alameda County to extend the contract at the Oakland Coliseum, but ABC7 reported ahead of the West Sacramento announcement the partners weren't close to a deal.
West Sacramento's Sutter Health Park is the home of the River Cats, the Giants' Triple-A affiliate owned by Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé. The Sacramento River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics from 2000 to 2014 and became an affiliate of the San Francisco Giants in 2015, according to the River Cats website.
"We're committed to providing A's players and fans with a world-class baseball experience at Sutter Health Park while also continuing the beloved tradition of Minor League Baseball and the Sacramento River Cats," Ranadivé said.
The A's plan to move to a stadium to be built on the Las Vegas Strip with $380 million in public financing approved by the Nevada government. However, the team needs a temporary home as the new ballpark isn't expected to open until 2027 at the earliest.
"I think this is going to be the most fun stadium to watch a game in Major League Baseball. One of the other things that's really important is we're so thrilled today, but we're not satisfied because in 2028 there'll be more teams to compete for and we want to be a permanent Major League Baseball franchise," said Barry Broome, the CEO and President of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council.
A source close to the organization previously told ABC10 members of the A's toured the ballpark in January. Leaders met again in Sacramento Wednesday to continue discussions on the move.
"We have everything in place, we've been waiting for this moment. We've been building the riverfront for this moment and we are ready to make this happen and make it successful — as Barry said more than the three years," West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero said.
Oakland is the franchise's third home. It started in Philadelphia from 1901-54, then moved to Kansas City for 13 seasons before arriving in California.
Watch more on ABC10 | Oakland A's Relocation to Las Vegas | Rob Manfred news conference
