Analyzing Potential Outcomes of San Jose’s Suit Against MLB
San Jose may be one of the country's biggest cities, but there's one thing it's lacking: a professional baseball team. San Jose has publicly courted the Oakland Athletics in the past; however, current MLB restrictions prohibit the team from relocating to San Jose. The city recently made a bold move to rectify this problem by suing Major League Baseball.
The Oakland A's have long played in the outdated O.co Coliseum in Oakland. San Jose already has the necessary land reserved for a new stadium, while A's ownership has pledged $500 million towards construction. Several factors are at work preventing an A's move to San Jose, however.
Antitrust Exemption
Major League Baseball has an interesting antitrust exemption, giving the league immense power when it comes to the movement of franchises. This antitrust exemption is at the heart of the case that San Jose has against MLB. A 1922 Supreme Court case, Federal Baseball Club v. National League, ruled that MLB was in the "business [of] giving exhibitions of baseball" and was not "interstate trade or commerce," as defined by antitrust laws. Despite the fact that teams traveled across state lines to play, it was ruled that MLB was not technically a monopoly and therefore was exempt from typical antitrust legislation. Because of this exemption, the league has the power to control franchise locations.
Territorial Rights
The primary issue preventing an A's move is that of territorial rights. The A's territory includes Contra Costa and Alameda counties, while the San Francisco Giants hold dominion over the remainder of the Bay Area counties, including Santa Clara County, the location of San Jose. The rights to the South Bay were gifted to the Giants by former A's owner Walter Haas in the early 1990s while Giants ownership searched for a location to build a new stadium. The Giants ended up building AT&T Park in San Francisco and did not require San Jose as a new territory. However, upon request for the return of those rights, the Giants have been less than accommodating, claiming they have a strongly rooted fan base in the San Jose area.
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The Muni car drops you right in front of the stadium. Of course with the BART strike going on, a lot of people will be trying to figure out how to go see the Athletics play. I want the Raiders to remain here.. I used to love the 49ers, until they flipped off the City fans by saying, you didn't build us a stadium, so we are leaving. The Giants solved that problem far better than the 49ers.