Oakland is Bay Area's Best Chance to Keep A's

The seven tumultuous and disappointing years under owners Lew Wolff and John Fisher have divided the A's fan base into three camps: the majority, who want the A's to stay in Oakland; and two smaller groups who want a new stadium either in Santa Clara County or anywhere in the Bay Area. So, the Sunday report from the Chronicle's Matier & Ross -- who said two ownership groups want to buy the A's and keep the team in Oakland -- should be uniting the fractured fan base. After all, if Matier & Ross are right and Wolff's San Jose plans keep falling through (as they appear to be), then the pro-Oakland majority and the "anywhere in the Bay" faction both will be getting what they want.

Which is why it's been weird to see some people who claimed for years to want a new ballpark "anywhere in the Bay Area, including Oakland" react to this seemingly good news with anger. For anyone understandably worried about the A's leaving the state, isn't having more pro-Bay Area prospective ownership groups a good thing? Keeping the A's in Oakland, obviously, means keeping the A's in the Bay Area -- a win-win for nearly all A's fans. What's the problem here?

For years, some have suspected that people were being insincere when they said they were in favor of "building a stadium anywhere in the Bay, whether it's Oakland or the South Bay." Kind of like when Wolff said he had "exausted all options in Oakland," when it's been pretty well-chronicled that he's done nothing of the sort.

Well, this latest Matier & Ross article is that crowd's best opportunity to prove their naysayers wrong. If they're truly for keeping the A's "anywhere in the Bay Area," and it's looking like the Giants are successfully blocking a move south, then staying in Oakland with new owners is the best way for all A's fans to get what what they want. If it continues to move in that direction, let's unite now as a fan base. Feel free to hop on board the pro-Oakland bandwagon. It's more crowded than you may think, but we'll make room for you.

Let's go, Oakland! Let's go, Bay Area!