It’s official: Oakland A’s to play three seasons in West Sacramento, Kings ownership announces

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Major League Baseball is coming to Sacramento.

Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher announced Thursday that the A’s will relocate to West Sacramento beginning in 2025 as the team transitions into its planned move to Las Vegas. The A’s will move to Sutter Health Park, home of the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, for three seasons with an option for a fourth year.

“I’m thrilled to welcome the A’s to Sutter Health Park, where players and fans alike can enjoy a world-class baseball experience and create unforgettable memories,” Ranadivé, who also owns the River Cats, said in a news release. “Today marks the next chapter of professional sports in Sacramento. The passion of our fans is second to none, and this is an incredible opportunity to showcase one of the most dynamic and vibrant markets in the country.”

Later, at a news conference celebrating a move that had been speculated about for months, Ranadivé and others pointed to the three-year commitment as a dress rehearsal for a possible MLB franchise down the road.

“You’re going to see world-class baseball in the most intimate stadium in Major League Baseball,” Ranadivé said of the venue that currently seats 16,000 when counting the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only. “You’re going to see (Shohei) Ohtani. You’re going to see Aaron Judge hitting home runs.

“What an incredible day. This is epic. This is historic.”

While millions in upgrades have already been made since Ranadivé and the Kings ownership bought the team in 2022, more are expected to be made to bring Sutter Health Park up to MLB standards, he said.

“If we can prove that there’s a market here (and) we can make the team successful, I think we’re in full position to get the new franchise,” Ranadivé said.

The move comes two days after the A’s said they were still “far apart” on an Oakland Coliseum lease extension following a meeting with city officials. The current lease runs out at the end of this season, well before the A’s future home on the Las Vegas Strip will be completed.

“We look forward to making Sutter Health Park our home through our move to Las Vegas,” Fisher said. “We extend our appreciation to the Kings and the city of West Sacramento for hosting the A’s while we work to complete our new ballpark in Las Vegas.”

The A’s, who moved to Oakland from Kansas City in 1968, expect to open a new ballpark on the Las Vegas Strip in 2028 to complete their relocation, though they have yet to break ground as construction contracts have not yet been signed.

Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred thanked the Sacramento region for providing the A’s with a temporary home following years of contentious relocation talks in Oakland.

“On behalf of all of MLB, I want to express my appreciation to West Sacramento, Sutter Health Park, the Kings and the greater Sacramento region for their excitement to host the A’s for interim play, as the A’s new permanent home is built in Las Vegas,” Manfred said.

The news of a pending deal was first reported Wednesday night by Sacramento radio host Dave Weiglein, known as Carmichael Dave, after the team had scheduled meetings with Oakland and Alameda County officials Tuesday and Sacramento representatives Wednesday.

The River Cats, the minor league team that has called the capital region home for 25 years, will continue to play at Sutter Health Park, officials said, insisting they “are not going anywhere.”

The move comes after weeks of speculation about the future of the A’s in Oakland and murmurs that Sacramento could become its temporary home.

The team stated after Tuesday’s meeting in Oakland that the sides were still “far apart” in negotiations after the city presented an offer in which the A’s would have paid $97 million to stay at the Coliseum over the next five years. Under the proposal, the A’s would have been able to leave after three years, but would pay the full amount. Mayor Sheng Thao said in a statement Tuesday night that the city would await a response.

The organization, which blamed the city of Oakland for the failure to see through the A’s proposed stadium and ballpark district at Howard Terminal, had reopened negotiations with Oakland officials to extend the lease. Thao publicly drew a hard line on those talks, though, saying she would require a guarantee from Major League Baseball that an expansion team would come to Oakland, and that the city would retain the A’s team name.

Fisher and A’s team president Dave Kaval, the faces of the relocation saga, also had talks with Salt Lake City officials about playing the intervening period in that city.

The club and Oakland officials held at least two other formal meetings in recent weeks that were described as productive, but ultimately the negotiations to keep the team in Oakland failed.

“We explored several locations for a temporary home, including the Oakland Coliseum,” Fisher said. “Even with the long-standing relationship and good intentions on all sides in the negotiations with Oakland, the conditions to achieve an agreement seemed out of reach. We understand the disappointment this news brings to our fans, as this season marks our final one in Oakland. Throughout this season, we will honor and celebrate our time in Oakland, and will share additional details soon.”

A major complication for the A’s in leaving Oakland is their local broadcast contract with NBC Sports, which reportedly pays them $67 million in annual revenue, though the move to Sacramento may offer them a chance to keep at least a portion of that. The Sacramento Kings also air on NBC Sports California.

For much of the A’s 57-season run at the Coliseum, ownership has sought relocation, stretching as far back as 1970, when former owner Charlie Finley reportedly had discussions about moving the team to Toronto. Later came Chicago, Denver and the South Bay — whether San Jose or Fremont.

The news was greeted by many in the capital region as an opportunity for Sacramento to showcase itself as a major-league city.

“West Sacramento is proud to welcome the A’s to our community,” said West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero. “Sutter Health Park, the Sacramento Kings and the Sacramento River Cats have been tremendous partners for our city and region, and we recognize this unique opportunity will bring significant economic benefits.”

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said he had “conflicting emotions” but was excited as more professional sports could showcase the capital region.

“Sacramento is passionate about baseball,” he said in a statement. “Sacramento has an indomitable spirit. I am grateful to Vivek Ranadivé and the Sacramento Kings for continuously uplifting our city. Success breeds more success.

“A decade ago, when we united to save the Kings, many of us said yes because we believed it would bring untold benefits to the future of Sacramento. Not only did we keep our NBA team, but now (at least temporarily) we are a Major League Baseball city. There will be more great days to come. It’s truly the stuff of dreams.”

Ranadivé bought the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, for approximately $100 million in August 2022. Ranadivé has long expressed a desire to bring additional teams to Sacramento, including the A’s.

“It’s no secret that I’m friends with (A’s owner) John Fisher,” Ranadivé recently told CBS 13 in Sacramento. “And I’ve been talking to him about having the A’s play here for a few years. And I’ve also been in touch with the baseball commissioner about possibly having a major-league team here. And if we make the A’s thing happen, and we can show that, ‘Hey, this is an amazing fan base, we’re going to have a huge response if we had baseball here.’”

The Bay Area News Group and The Bee’s Daniel Hunt contributed to this story.