A's Groundbreaking Ceremony in Las Vegas Gets a Date

The Athletics have set a date for their official groundbreaking ceremony in Las Vegas, and in true A's fashion, it will happen when the team is away from their home ballpark so that the local media is unable to ask any questions. The date they have selected is Monday, June 23 at 8 a.m. (PT).

Of course, the way that A's spokespeople have phrased it, the ground has already been broken on the project, though numerous outlets in the Las Vegas media have said they're just pushing dirt around. The event is meant to be a spectacle that shows the public that progress is being made, but there are plenty that are still skeptical.

There have been no updates on the financing of the project, which is short at least a billion dollars, meanwhile GAP stock (which is where most of A's owner John Fisher's wealth is tied) has been fluctuating wildly in recent weeks, and is down 12% over the past six months. There is also the looming tariffs that could certainly impact the project as well. This isn't to mention the price of the ballpark likely being higher than the projected $1.75 billion, causing more money woes.

Many will say that they can just buy American steel, but any project that is set to happen around this time is going to be looking into that route at the same time, and the A's Las Vegas ballpark project is going to need a lot of steel. They may have to look at outside manufacturers in order to literally get this thing off the ground.

Of course, the biggest question remaining is still how the funding will work out. Fisher has said he's good for it, and even scribbled that on a napkin as proof. The $1 billion (at least) he needs is roughly one-third of his estimated net worth, and that money isn't exactly liquid.

The only reported investor has been Aramark, at $175 million. They will now not only be the food and beverage service provider for the A's in Sin City, but they also are set to own part of the franchise. It's not yet known how much of a piece of the pie Aramark is getting for their investment.

While the groundbreaking is meant to be an "I told you so" event, there are plenty of groundbreaking ceremonies that happen around the country (yes, even in Las Vegas) without real construction following. All Net Arena in Las Vegas is just one example. Brightline, the high-speed rail that had a groundbreaking in April of last year, is now requesting extensions on permits.

Brightline also had an expected opening of 2028.

These are all questions that revolve around the Fisher side of things, but there is also Bally's to take into account as the A's partner on the property. The Tropicana site is 35-acres, and the A's proposed ballpark is set to take up just nine of those, while the Bally's project will take up the rest. They've been having funding issues of their own.

So will the A's Las Vegas ballpark officially get underway after a fancy groundbreaking? Only time will tell, but it doesn't provide a ton of confidence that the questions people have had about the project all along still persist.

It has always seemed as though someone is going to have to put up a big gob of money to make this thing happen, and it's not likely to be Fisher. If that happens, then the project is surely a go. Until that happens, the project will remain questionable.