The Oakland Coliseum will remain standing at the end of this week, but without a baseball team for the first time in 57 years.
Bryan Johansen will attend the last Oakland A’s game on Thursday.
“If I start talking about it, I’ll start crying,” Johansen explained. “I have my wife. I have my son. Then I have the Oakland Athletics. That is how my life has always been.
Johansen is a co-owner of Baseball’s Last Dive Bar, which offers A’s merchandise based on fan experiences. This includes shirts with an Oakland postmark stamp bearing the date of the final home game.
He is a lifelong A’s fan, but he is outraged by the letter that troubled owner John Fisher sent to supporters on Monday. Johansen describes the letter as “one slap in the face after another.”
“He basically published a statement, a letter, saying he did everything he could. He did not. “They tried several times to relocate outside of Oakland,” Johansen added.
Fisher wrote, in part, “I can tell you from the heart that we tried. Staying in Oakland was our purpose and mission, but we failed to achieve it. And for that I really apologize.”
But Johansen is not buying it.
“They didn’t try to make it work in Oakland,” Johansen says. “They did not provide $850 million in private equity in Oakland. They never promised a stadium with no surrounding development, like they did in Las Vegas and Oakland. They never offered any debt funding. “They did not do any of that stuff.”
Casey Pratt, a spokesperson for Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, told ABC7 News, “The issue is that [Fisher] was unwilling to invest.” He never made a significant investment in his roster or stadium plans, despite the fact that his franchise’s value increased by a billion dollars. That is why he fell short of his stated objectives both on and off the field.”
Jorge Leon Leon is the President of the Oakland 68’s, a volunteer organization that supports Oakland sporting teams.
“He doesn’t need to say anything. He has previously stated that he is moving, correct? That’s all,” Leon explained. “You are forever tainted in the Bay Area as the worst owner in sports.”
He considers Fisher’s letter offensive and unnecessary. He claims there is no reason to say goodbye to supporters when, as Leon believes, the goal is only to make money.
“He should just leave without saying anything. Be silent. “We all know the truth, which is to keep his revenue-sharing check coming in,” Leon explained.
The A’s are expecting a sellout crowd for their final game.
