New Oakland Athletics…A Successful Team
The New Oakland Athletics were founded in 1901 as the Philadelphia Athletics. The team was one of eight charter franchises that helped to form the American League. Other unofficial names for the team include the “A’s” and the elephants.
During their time in Pennsylvania, the team had periods of success, winning three World Series between 1910 and 1914, and two consecutively in 1929 and 1930. They also have nine American League Pennants from that period.
In 1955, the team moved to Kansas City but a lack of success in their time there prompted yet another move. In 1968 the team moved to Oakland. Since then, they have won four more World Series Titles, six American League Pennants, 14 West Division Titles, and a Wild Card Berth.
Although the team has officially been the Athletics since they were formed, they have also been known unofficially as the Elephants in the past. The elephant came into the picture when the owner of the Giants was said to have told a reporter that the new owner of the Athletics had bought a “White Elephant.” The Athletics’ owner decided to use the elephant as the team’s mascot. Since then, the elephant has been used on uniforms during different periods. Currently, the team’s mascot is Stomper, an elephant that appears at home games and makes appearances in the community throughout the year.
Currently, the New Oakland Athletics are rumored to have problems with their stadium. They are one of only two teams in the league to still share a multipurpose stadium with the local football team. The stadium, which seats over 60,000 people, is too large for a baseball team, and the A’s require a new stadium of their own.
Negotiations with several other venues have all fallen through, and the city of Oakland in an attempt to keep the team has proposed several sites for a new stadium, even offering to acquire the land with money from a federal stimulus grant for urban development.
The home of the New Oakland Athletics has been the Oakland-Alameda county Coliseum since they moved to the area in 1968, although it has officially been known by other names during that time. Common nicknames include the Coliseum and the Oakland Coliseum.
The team shares the stadium with the Raiders, and at times the local professional soccer team when attendance is high. The stadium has a capacity of more than 63,000 seats, however the Athletics tarp off large portions of the stadium lowering the capacity for their games to around 35,000. The tarps are not removed except in case of post season games.
The New Oakland Athletics are great at entertaining their fans, giving them their money’s worth at every home game. A baseball game in Oakland is a game like no other.
