Outclassed: Las Vegas A’s Stadium Funding Ballot Measure Denied

Extra inning heroics seems to have fallen short. The political action committee Schools Over Stadiums has been fighting to have a Las Vegas A's stadium funding ballot measure in front of voters to either approve or deny giving $380 million public funds to the Athletics. The Nevada Supreme Court has said the attempt has struck out.

The ruling came down Monday with the majority of judges - five in total - voting to uphold an earlier, lower court ruling striking down the Las Vegas A's stadium funding ballot measure.

If you look around, you see public funds (and low tax rates) benefitting major corporations that could afford to foot the bill entirely. Allegiant Stadium is a prime example. The stadium ran $750 million in public funds, raised by a tax on tourists who stay in town. As though they don't face enough fees.

If the funding doesn't get paid by tourists, we have to dip into the reserves. We had to do that right off the bat due in part to the COVID pandemic.

Now, it goes without saying that Allegiant Stadium has been a huge success. The Las Vegas Raiders only play in the stadium about a dozen games a year (or less). That leaves a slew of open dates for massive events which have filled the stadium to the gills. That project seems to be potentially paying for itself.

The Athletics move to Las Vegas hinges upon $180 million in state funding and $200 million in county funding. That's a lot of scratch. Not to mention the team will be in the stadium for 81 games a year, which leaves far fewer dates available in a venue that few "stadium tours" are willing to take over. Projections to pay back what the state and county is footing will require near sell-outs every game. The math doesn't math.

Meanwhile, Nevada students have very little money dedicated to them. According to World Population Review, Nevada spends the 4th least money per student in the nation, spending half as much as other states which tend to have far better results.

That's the point of the Schools Over Stadiums PAC and the reason they want a Las Vegas A's stadium funding ballot measure in front of voters. Voters who, it seems, aren't too keen on giving multi-billionaire Athletics owner John Fisher a fork lift filled with Benjamins.

You might think John Fisher could fund this all by himself today. That might not be so true. He's been a little wishy-washy on how he'll foot his end of the bill. From his own pocket? Finding investors?

Perhaps if he believes so much in the ability of the team to perform well in Las Vegas, he should foot the bill. Raiders owner Mark Davis saw his net worth more than quadruple since announcing the team was moving to the valley. The same will likely ring true for any other even slightly well run franchise.

While this feels like a death blow for the PAC attempting to get a Las Vegas A's stadium funding ballot measure in front of voters, they say their aim is for 2026.

However by then the project will very likely have shovels in the dirt. So the likelihood of that measure panning out is low.

At this point the only thing between the A's stadium funding and reality is the organization's own incompetence. Don't put it past them.

We've officially made it to Major League Baseball's opening day. And we've got four bold predictions for the 2024 MLB season.

Last year felt like a nice setup for this season to really hit one out of the park, so to speak. 2023 saw the new MLB rules take hold. This was notable with the pitch clock and the attempt to speed up the game. The looming question of what's next for Shohei Ohtani was lingering all year. Obviously the uncommon pitcher/hitter superstar chose to stay in southern California, but headed to move over to the Dodgers.

A consistent, no-frills style of baseball led the Texas Rangers to defeat a young and scrappy Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series. Both have similar rosters this year, but will either team be as good?

We are already off to a unique start with the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers splitting the Seoul Series in Korea. We are certainly teed up for an exciting seven months of baseball.

Some factors came close to finding their way into my four bold predictions, but were not strong enough to grab a spot in the lineup. However, they do remain open questions for baseball fans to look out for as the season unfolds.

In New York, will the Yankees adding the fierce bat of Juan Soto to the team bounce them back from a disappointing season? Soto may have to make up for the lack of depth at pitching now the Cy Young winner, Gerrit Cole is starting the season injured.

In Atlanta, the Braves are so talented across the board, it's hard to pick against them in all of the National League. However, I do expect some epic NL East clashes throughout the year between division rivals, the Braves and Philadelphia Phillies.

We shall see about all of the above. In the meantime, let's hit some 2024 MLB bold predictions to get the ball rolling.

It may be a news subject that fades away, but Shohei Ohtani's name being involved in a potential gambling scandal is not a great way to kick off the season. This general topic is one that all pro sports are taking very seriously and could hang over the organization's head for much of the season. The Dodgers are certainly loaded with stars, but as the Yankees have proven in years past, a monster payroll does not guarantee wins. In fact, too many superstars in one clubhouse can be detrimental to team unity.

MLB has been faced with the challenge of making the games more exciting and engaging. There's only so much you can do to change the rules of the sport without stepping on the integrity of the game. The adjustments to speed things up certainly helped. So did the arrival of flashy alternate uniforms. Nine new teams will have a creative new jersey thrown into their mix. They will be unveiled soon. However, rocking a special edition jersey that is a nod to your home city should make this gear a top-seller in the shops. We've already seen teams like the Diamondbacks add accents of teal and fluorescents into their color schemes. This City Connect theme has been a very successful model in the NBA.

Speaking of uniforms, the Padres adding a sand tone to their away threads is an all-time classic look. The beach and baseball are synonymous. That has nothing to do with why SD will finish ahead of the bigger names like the Dodgers or San Francisco Giants. Fernando Tatis Jr is fully back, and the cornerstone to a team that is full of both speed and strength. The Padres did a great job of giving fans an inside glimpse of their spring training this year, and it certainly appeared as if the club was already having a blast. Their team unity and chemistry will carry them far.

Seattle, and the great state of Washington was so close to starting the year off with a championship parade thanks to the Huskies making the college football finals. They may end the year with one instead, and it will be well worth the wait. Julio Rodríguez is one of the most well-rounded players in the game. He's also just 23 years old. The X factor for the M's, though, will be how solid their pitching is, with the bulk of the rotation remaining healthy all year. The lineup then institutes small-ball baseball beautifully throughout the year, where the team seems to always know how to close out the close games. Ultimately, I'm taking the Mariners over the Braves in the 2024 World Series, which I can foresee being one of the most thrilling finals we've seen in a long time.