MLB owners approve A's relocation bid for Las Vegas

The city of Oakland took another blow to the chin as John Fisher was given the green light by his fellow team owners to relocate the beloved Athletics.

On Thursday, the 29 other owners of Major League Baseball teams unanimously voted to approve Fisher's bid to move the A's to Las Vegas. The vote had long been expected despite legal challenges from both Oakland and a group representing educators and taxpayers in Nevada.

Fisher, who purchased the team from Lewis Wolff in 2016, still has to finalize plans to develop a baseball-only stadium in Las Vegas. However, his aim is to have the team playing in the new city by 2028. Looking ahead to that period, there are questions if Fisher will open up his wallet to field a competitive team, but none of that matters until a stadium is built.

In a statement, as reported by Evan Drellich and Melissa Lockard of The Athletic, Oakland's mayor still isn't giving up the fight to keep the team:

“'We are disappointed by the outcome of this vote,' Oakland mayor Sheng Thao said in a statement. “But we do not see this as the end of the road. We all know there is a long way to go before shovels in the ground and that there are a number of unresolved issues surrounding this move.'

"Thao also said she has 'made it clear' to MLB commissioner Rob Manfred that 'the A’s branding and name should stay in Oakland' and the city will pursue expansion team opportunities. 'Baseball has a home in Oakland even if the A’s ownership relocates,' she said."

That said, Oakland has been through a ton given its recent history of franchise relocations from the city. Before moving to Las Vegas, the Raiders went through some similar battles with the city, which in turn ended up thwarting their attempt to return to Los Angeles as originally planned. The NFL team was free to leave Oakland after the 2013 season and attempted to work out separate plans to share a new stadium with either the then-San Diego Chargers or then-St. Louis Rams. Neither came to fruition, of course, and the Chargers and Rams returned to L.A. while the Raiders ultimately moved to Vegas.

Separately, the Warriors moved back across the Bay to San Francisco as their dynastic days of the 2010s provided enough momentum to develop Chase Center.

MLB, the A's and Oakland have been mired in this saga for long enough. While the team will be in Nevada in the near future, the East Bay certainly deserves far better than it's gotten from the teams and leagues that once called Oakland home.