Major League Baseball In Amarillo? Move Here Oakland Athletics!
It's no secret that I'm a massive baseball fan, I talk about it literally all the time.
My allegiance is pledged to the San Francisco Giants and nothing will ever sway me from them being my favorite team.
However, I COULD be swayed into becoming a part-time Athletics fan...but only if they were to come here.
Why am I even talking about a Major League Baseball team coming to Amarillo? Allow me to give you a little background as to why this could be a (remote) possibility.
For several years now, the A's and the city of Oakland have been embroiled in a battle over a new ballpark for the team to play in. The A's want it, and in some capacity, the city wants it as well. However, the big struggle has been about funding for the project.
In the midst of all this, the A's are doing what the A's do. They're trading away all their superstar players before they get too expensive and have to get paid big dollars. This has been something the A's have done for YEARS. Fans are finally tired of it.
This is evidenced by the fact that almost no one attends their games anymore. They are dead last in average attendance with 7,547 people attending a game in Oakland. Yesterday, the announced attendance was just over 5,000. A picture was circulated 20-30 minutes before first pitch though and it looked like there were MAYBE 50 people at the ballpark. No, I'm not exaggerating.
One of the hottest rumors is that the A's will bolt Oakland for Las Vegas. Of course, this will bring in an entirely new fanbase...and it'll be the second franchise to leave Oakland for the lights of Vegas.
It's not a done deal though, and that leaves the potential for other cities to jump in the mix for the team. Granted, Amarillo is a small city and would be the smallest city to have a professional franchise. That said, I'm pretty sure the Sod Poodles draw in the same kind of attendance numbers the A's are currently pulling. Imagine how many people in the city would show up for an MLB game in this city, it would dwarf the numbers they're pulling in Oakland.
Sure, we'd need a bigger stadium than Hodgetown to make it happen, but would the city of Amarillo entertain such an idea? I'd like to think yes. Let's try and gain some steam for this, it would be incredible to have some Major League Baseball to go and watch.