Tank's 30 Ball Park Tour: Oakland Coliseum
As the Oakland Athletics prepare for their final series at the Colesium, take a peek at my visit in August. The Oakland Alameda County Coliseum is part of a multisport complex with an indoor arena next door. The Coliseum opened in 1966 as the Raiders' home, with the arena hosting the NBA's Golden State Warriors. In 1968, it became home to the Athletics, which had relocated from Kansas City.
The Oakland Alameda County Coliseum was opened in the era of multipurpose stadiums. It was round to accommodate baseball and football, but it was not necessarily best suited for either one. The 1970s were a golden age for Oakland and the Coliseum, as the Raiders played in the AFL & AFC Championship six times in nine times in eleven years between 1967 and 1977. They played in Super Bowl II and won Super Bowl XI. At the same time, the Athletics became a powerhouse in MLB, winning the AL West five straight seasons, highlighted by a World Series threepeat 1972, 1973, and 1974.
The Raiders won an additional Super Bowl to begin the 1980s, while the Athletics began rebuilding following the advent of free agency. In 1982, the Raiders moved to Los Angeles after a long legal battle. The Athletics would have their ups and downs but again became a powerhouse at the end of the decade, with three straight World Series appearances. This included a sweep of the Giants in the 1989 Battle of the Bay, interrupted by a massive earthquake, with the A's becoming a beacon of hope for the quake victims.
The City of Oakland lured the Raiders back in 1995. Upon doing so, they added new stands, which removed the Coliesum's best feature, a hill behind the bleachers with a mountain view. The Oakland Coliseum's vast foul territory to accommodate the football field was a unique feature that was outdated after the new wave of cozy retro ballparks began with the opening of Camden Yards in 1992.
Over the last three decades, baseball has struggled in Oakland. As the Giants opened their retro park, the Athletics wallowed as second-class citizens, often clashing with the Raiders and the city of Coliseum improvements. The Athletics sought to have a new stadium in the Bay Area, but their owner, John Fisher, never wanted to contribute any money to the project, as the City of Oakland was experiencing financial difficulties. Eventually, the Athletics made an agreement to move to Las Vegas.
The stadium in Las Vegas will not be ready for at least three years as John Fisher continues to be unwilling to finance his own team or stadium project. Squabbles with the City of Oakland have left the Athletics without a home for the next few seasons. A plan is underway for them to use a AAA stadium in Sacramento beginning in 2025.
The 2024 season has been a year-long wake for Oakland's loyal fans. That will come to an end on September 26th, when the AThletics host the Texas Rangers in the final MLB game in Oakland. My visit examined the issues in Oakland and the state of disrepair of the Coliseum, as well as the history of the Athletics, who once called Philadelphia home and will be the first team to operate without a city identity in 2025, before heading to a permanent home in Las Vegas, which will be their fifth city when they arrive in 2028.
