Billy Beane found ways to avoid thinking about what the Athletics’ final days in Oakland would be like throughout the 2024 MLB season.
But now, less than 48 hours away from the Coliseum’s farewell, nostalgia is settling in for the longtime A’s executive.
The former A’s player, former vice president of baseball operations and current senior advisor spoke to Brian Murphy and Markus Boucher on KNBR’s “Murph and Markus” on Wednesday morning about the organization's end of an era in Oakland.
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“I think like a lot of people, it didn’t really seem real,” Beane told Murphy and Boucher. “You know, obviously, I’ve been on the inside. From a distance, David [Kaval] and his staff have done, except from me getting [Brent] Rooker, drafting [Lawrence] Butler and putting [Mason] Miller in the bullpen, they’ve done everything else.”
Jokes aside, the stark reality of the A’s 56-year stay in Oakland coming to a close is one that Beane, who played for the A’s during the 1989 MLB season and has been a member of the organization since, is struggling to accept.
“I’ve kind of put it out of my mind, but I think like everybody, all of a sudden the reality kind of hits you,” Beane said. “Certainly, there’s a significant amount of nostalgia that I have going back. Listen, as you mentioned ‘86 as a visiting player and ‘89 as a member of the A’s.
“It’s kind of hard to get your arms around it and your mind around the whole idea. Unfortunately, it’s reality, and I’m going to enjoy the last couple of games like everybody else.”
In February, Beane reportedly did his part in trying to keep the club at the Coliseum by urging team owner John Fisher to reengage with the city of Oakland on a potential lease extension.
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Beane’s effort fell short, and with the A’s Coliseum lease set to expire after the 2024 season, Oakland’s matchup against the Texas Rangers on Sep. 26 marks the end of the franchise’s time in “The Town.”
Now, all that the architect of “Moneyball” can do prior to the A's move to Sacramento is extend a message of solidarity to the individuals that made Green and Gold Oakland's colors for generations: the fans.
“Listen, I think like with every major league team, the people I think about – not too much like myself – there’s times when I remember walking down the little alleyway and going to the dugout from the clubhouse, and there’s longtime fans that have been there every game, every single year. Some of them would even drive out great distances, and you kind of realize that this is really them,” Beane added.
Beane also shared a message of solidarity to longtime A’s employees and media members as well.
After all, Thursday is going to be an emotional day for everyone who made the A’s a heartbeat of Oakland.
“A little bit too, like the radio, guys like Bill King and Ken Korach have been a part of their lives, in some cases, all the way back to the beginning in the 1960s. It’s a little bit sobering for everybody,” Beane concluded. “I know everybody, even in our organizations, feels the pain.
“ … I know it’s going to be really, really sad, not just for fans but for longtime employees as well.”