PHOENIX — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred called the Athletics temporary home charming but reiterated he expects the franchise will open its new stadium in Las Vegas in 2028.

Manfred recently visited the 14,000-seat minor league stadium in West Sacramento, California, and said the owners of the Triple-A River Cats and Athletics have provided players with “as close to a major league experience as it can possibly be.”

“It was a really positive day,” Manfred said Tuesday. “I’m glad I took the time to do it before opening day. That was my plan originally. I think the level of excitement in the community is really palpable.”

The Athletics had been based at the Oakland Coliseum since 1968, but left their longtime home following last season with a plan to eventually wind up in Las Vegas, which has added NHL and NFL franchises over the past decade.

The Las Vegas Stadium Authority approved lease, non-relocation and development documents in December to clear the last major hurdles for the A’s to construct a $1.75 billion stadium on the Strip. Dtails remain to be worked out, such as a development agreement with Clark County, but groundbreaking likely will take place in the spring to allow a 2028 opening.

“I don’t think the timeline has changed,” Manfred said. “I believe we’re going to be on time to go in 2028.”

Nevada and Clark County are providing $380 million in public funds for a domed stadium estimated to have a 33,000 capacity.

Interim A’s team president Sandy Dean said at the December meeting that owner John Fisher increased the previous pledge of his family’s money to $1.1 billion. Dean said U.S. Bank and Goldman Sachs will offer a $300 million loan and that Fisher still hopes to attract investors in Las Vegas and elsewhere who would purchase equity in the team.

The Tampa Bay Rays also will play in a minor league ballpark due to hurricane damage at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida,, using the New York Yankees’ spring training and Class A ballpark, Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

“The industry owes Hal Steinbrenner a real debt of gratitude,” Manfred said of the Yankees owner. “He put literally tens of millions of dollars into improving Steinbrenner Field and the first people who are really going to get to use it for any period of time is the Tampa Bay Rays.”

Related Story: Judge Hits 55th Homer of Season, Yankees Beat Athletics and Draw Closer to Clinching AL East

Packing the Seats

Manfred said teams anticipate another attendance rise.

“At the risk of jinxing myself, we do have great expectations for 2025,” Manfred said. “Over the last couple of years, we feel like we’ve made great improvements with respect to the game on the field. We have a great generation of really talented players who are playing a game that’s crisp, athletic and action packed.”

MLB games averaged 29,373 fans last season, the most since 2017. That was up from 29,114 in 2023 and 26,566 in 2022 as the sport rebounded from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Baseball reached its high attendance during the 2007 season with a 32,6b96 average.

Dodger Blues

The gap between baseball’s haves and have nots looks like it will increase even more in 2025, mostly thanks to the big-spending Los Angeles Dodgers.

Manfred acknowledged his concerns payroll discrepancy but is not blaming the Dodgers.

“The Dodgers have gone out and done everything possible, always within the rules that currently exist, to put the best possible team on the field and that’s a great thing for the game,” Manfred said. “That type of competitive spirit is what people want to see.”

Baseball’s biggest spender in 2024 won the World Series: The Dodgers had a $353 million luxury tax payroll and had to pay a $103 million tax. The Athletics had the lowest luxury tax payroll at just under $84 million.

Manfred said fans have sent him emails with concerns about the game’s financial parity.

“It’s clear we have fans in some markets that are concerned about the ability of the team in their market to compete with the financial resources of the Dodgers,” Manfred said. “If we’ve been consistent on one point, it is we try to listen to our fans on topics like this.”

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AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum and AP Sports Writer Mark Anderson in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

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