Longtime A’s manager Bob Melvin calls move to Vegas ‘sad’

From  2011-2021, Bob Melvin managed the Oakland Athletics. On Monday, Melvin and his current team, the San Diego Padres, were in the Bay Area to start a four-game series against the San Francisco Giants. Prior to the game, Melvin opened up about the A’s likely moving to Las Vegas.

Melvin played with the Giants for three seasons. As manager of the A’s he led Oakland to three division titles and six playoff appearances, winning the American League Manager of the Year twice.

He was also born and raised in the Bay Area. So, his roots in Northern California are deep.  So, it’s not exactly surprising to hear that Melvin is not happy with the pending move to Vegas. He also left some hope for the fans in Oakland.

“It’s sad,” he said. “Anybody that grew up here does not look forward to that happening. I don’t know that anything is 100% sure yet. But obviously a lot of people here have followed the A’s. It’s a storied franchise with a rich history, a lot of winning, some of the great players in all of baseball played there. It would be sad. So, we’ll see where it goes from here. It looks like it’s getting some traction in Vegas. But you never know until the last minute. I think a lot of people are holding out hope that maybe it doesn’t happen.”

Bob Melvin gives his thoughts on the A's potential move to Las Vegas pic.twitter.com/0tHOQBEArU

— A's on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) June 20, 2023

Melvin is not alone. During the team’s series in Oakland, Philadelphia Phillies stars Bryson Stott and Bryce Harper — both from Las Vegas — advocated for the A’s to stay in Oakland.

Melvin managed the A’s for 1,680 games. That’s more than anyone in the franchise’s history in Oakland and, with the exception of Connie Mack, more than any skipper in the entire franchise’s history.

[A’s on NBC Sports]