Elephant Rumblings: A’s hire new president

MLB news roundup

Happy Friday LAWRENCE BUTLER DAY Athletics Nation!

The A’s have a new president.

My first reaction was, “The A’s hired Tom Colicchio?!”

My second reaction was, “The A’s hired Woody Harrelson?!”

Then, like a typical denizen of the 21st century, I finally read the actual words in front of me as a last resort.

The A’s new president is Marc Badain, who I subsequently learned is the former Raiders president who steered the NFL franchise from Oakland to Las Vegas and has an extensive history of involvement with and connections to large scale development projects like Allegiant Stadium, where the Raiders now play.

Interim president Sandy Dean is now vice chairman, and former president Dave Kaval, who left the A’s at the end of 2024 to “pursue business opportunities in California” is apparently still mulling over which opportunity looks best. Perhaps those in California are wary of Kaval’s history of pursuing business opportunities elsewhere after declaring commitments to remain rooted here. Time will tell, but Kaval’s legacy has been cemented as the toady that helped A’s owner John Fisher spirit away Oakland’s storied franchise beyond the point of no return.

Badain’s experience with the Raiders clearly indicates that having leadership that can successfully actuate the relocation to a new ballpark in Las Vegas is a high priority. The A’s apparently value this experience enough to overlook critical comments Badain made in 2023 about the A’s lack of “honesty and professionalism.”

According to Evan Drellich at The Athletic, Fisher is also apparently willing to look beyond Badain’s possibly forced resignation as Raiders president in 2021 over “accounting irregularities” after 30 years with the organization. This may be a plus, since regular accounting has yet to explain how the A’s are actually going to get their $1.75 billion ballpark completed.

In short: Badain seems like a perfect match for Fisher. This is fine. Enjoy your weekend, AN.

A’s Coverage:

• Athletics reportedly sign Lawrence Butler to 7-year extension
• A’s walloped by Brewers 10-0 in Spring Training matchup
• Athletics hire former Raiders exec Marc Badain as new team president ahead of Vegas move ($)
• Here’s the A’s Spring Breakout roster
• A’s to Provide Las Vegas Updates

MLB News & Interest:

• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. says final offer under $600M in Blue Jays talks
• Dodgers, Dave Roberts Making Progress In Extension Talks
• Mariners fans rage at Jerry Dipoto’s interviews. He’s ‘gonna get roasted’ for this one too ($)
• Offseason In Review: Washington Nationals
• DJ LeMahieu Diagnosed With Calf Strain
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

From under the radar..

Langs with some Law research.

Thursday’s highlight performances.

Peerless.

Oh look, someone’s been playing with ChatGPT again.

This guy always captured my imagination. Good jersey number, too.