The worst part of MT Davis is being a former raider season ticket holder for 30 years, and seeing that monstrosity being tarped off almost all its life. What a waste of money.

MLB the show should have a old Oakland stadium pre 1995 that would be so cool

I hope the A's can buy the stadium and make the following changes. 1. Remove MT davis. Replace with single deck and concourse with shade like Dodger stadium 2. Add Shade to the upper deck 3. Move homeplate back to reduce the amount of foul ball space. 4. Gut and modernize the lockers. This stadium has good bones, concrete decks etc. The above changes would bring it back to its former glory while retaining A's history.

Never been to Oakland, but here in New York it was the same with Shea Stadium. It was opened in 1964, and besides painting the outfield wall from green to blue, they never did any real updates on the place from the time it opened and just let it turn into a toilet. It doesn't take long. By the late 70s, Shea had already turned into a dump, and then they played there for 30 more years. You have to do constant work to keep structures like that from quickly deteriorating.

I think I remember hearing that Schott and Hoffman in the early '90's wanted to add more seating in foul territory to make it more baseball friendly similar to Shea and Old Busch, both circular stadiums. However the city denied them because they wanted to make the renovations to the arena and lure the Raiders back from LA.

I basically agree with all this. But I'd put it a little differently. What Mt. Davis did, among other things, was make updating the Coliseum for baseball impossible. Dodgers Stadium, Anaheim, and Kauffman are all fine places to watch a game since they've been updated. I agree that catch up is impossible now. But Mt. Davis arrived at precisely the moment that the Coliseum could have been updated and made it impossible to update. So, no, the presence of Mt. Davis is not all that's wrong with the Coliseum. But it played a larger role in what's wrong with the Coliseum that last sentence suggests.

Owner ship is terrible. Mr. Haas was the best owner of the A’s . We had a lot of fun back then ❤️

Sounds like the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority should be blamed for this.

You hit the nail on the head on this. What it boils now to is if you put money into something and keeping it modern and up to date with amenities. The actual stadium can be open for damn near ever. I damn near ever. I mean as long as the foundation lets it stand. Wrigley Field and Fenway Park are two great examples of this. They keep it up to date. Are the Cubs had an issue with Wrigley Field but they were eventually able to get it up to date. They never gave a damn about the Colosseum and now here we are

Disregarding the updates, i think one of the big aesthetic differences that Kauffman, Angel and Dodger stadiums have done is paint or graphics on the concrete columns and facade. It's a little thing but it dramatically changes the look. Hides the bleak old concrete look by adding some color. In the first deck of the coliseum there are parts that have been painted white, and even those sections look better. Wish they would do more of it

Tropicana Field (1990) and Guaranteed Rate Field (1991) are also older than Oriole Park at Camden Yards (1992).

Time to admit that Fenway, Wrigley and Dodger Stadium are outliers. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and build a new stadium. The Coliseum opened in 1966. You know what stadium opened the year before? Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. The Braves have now played in two new stadiums since playing there. The Coliseum's time has come and gone. It has more than served its purpose.

Decades of consistently bad decisions and actions about the stadium and neighborhood. Sad, because those 70s A’s still, in so many ways, define the character of this franchise. What better way to pay homage than through preserving that stadium. The 70s were one of the most fascinating times in baseball history (hair, uniforms, teams, players, owners, stadiums, free agency, etc.) and there is about to be nothing left to show for it. The early 20th century isn’t the only thing worth preserving.

It was good seeing the old stadium picture. I loved the bleachers back then. Now you miss any deep plays unless you are on the railing.

Even if Mount Davis was never built they would still be clamoring for a new venue, old configuration of the coliseum was more aesthetic but still 56 years old.

It's actually a California thing. With the exception of the Rams move to St Louis, no city in California feared their teams would leave. The Clippers moved to LA but were ran just as poorly managed there. Other franchises in cities around the country threatened to move and got their improvements or new venues. If it wasn't for private money, all franchises of all sports in California would be playing in dilapidated stadiums and arenas.

Could the removal of MT Davis change the attendance? It would at least attract attention for the A’s again and give it a more ballpark feel. I’m sure it’s becoming too little too late but with these attendance numbers anything is worth trying

This is one of the biggest flaws to the Coliseum. I can even say that another major flaw with the Coli is location. Yes you can take bart and tailgate, but the area around is somewhere nobody wants to hang out around at. I've walked past Petco Park and Chase Field, and of course Oracle. They're in a location where it's great to explore before a game or somewhere to go after a game, something that add a bit of pop for visiting fans. I will admit the connivence for local fans but one thing for sure is, its not too visiter friendly if you think about it.

There has been more money spent on paint every year at Dodger stadium than there’s ever been spent on Coliseum maintenance

I agree with Brodie 100%. I remember the construction workers dancing inbetween innings. I think everyone enjoyed this. But 50 years of deferred maintenance is the one thing that destroyed the colisseum

When the Raiders were there and the stadium was shared with the A’s, which teams paid for the groundskeepers to keep the stadium up to date for the respective tenants? I’m guessing both teams said that the other team should pay for the stadium to be in satisfactory condition for their respective games?

You did make one small error: Guaranteed Rate Field (White Sox) is one year older than Baltimore's Camden Yards.

I watched this video again. The biggest problem with the Coliseum is the total lack of interest in having Oakland want champion professional sports representing the city. I am a 4th generation East Bay native. Born in Oakland, graduate of Fremont High. Dedicated A's and Oaks fan. Former Raiders fan. But look at it seriously. Oakland doesn't want the A's. When the A's, Raiders and Warriors were winning championships, Oakland was on the map. It was looked up to. It was a nice city. It had a reputation. The Warriors moved back over to SF from where they came, the Raiders moved to Las Vegas where the city actually wanted them and the reputation a professional sports franchise will bring. Now the A's will move, probably to Las Vegas and bless them. And what about Oakland? Instead of being a city we all can be proud of, it will deteriorate into a dump. Will I be able to say that I am from Oakland with pride? Will others think that being from Oakland will cast me as being from the peasant class? Of course, the A's have done their part. They keep the lowest salary in baseball, trade away all their good players just as they are entering free agency. I used to be able to see who the A's would trade by looking at Cot's Contracts. They the A's do everything on the cheap and pocket their share of the equity fees that MLB collects from the teams that pick up all the A's talent. I went to a couple of A's spring training games this year and didn't recognize anyone. Even Bob Melvin left because he could see the deterioration of the organization. Who is Dave Kaval. From interviews, he sure doesn't look like someone who has an interest in developing a championship team. As for me, I moved out of California a few years ago. I'm now a citizen of another state and damn happy I made the move. Good luck Oakland, you're going to need it.

The amenities that you can experience when going to an A's game are very unique like avoiding getting shot at or robbed on the way to the game!😁

For the cost of the entire project (which I support btw) at HT, wouldn't it be less expensive to tear down and gut the entire existing Coliseum and start fresh from the ground up? Seems like that would face far far less political scrutiny and associated "games". That said, it's not going to happen - so c'mon Alameda Co. and Oakland officials - PLEASE don't let this opportunity slip out your grasp due to basic incompetence & political theater

You make some great point Brodie I love your articles.

My daughter and I went to a Royals' game in Kansas City in 2021. The K is a beautiful stadium with the fountains and Royals' Hall of Fame. You wouldn't know it was 50 years old.

The Coliseum when it was built was easily the best place to watch baseball of the multi-purpose stadiums. Making it C-shaped as opposed to a completely enclosed concrete donut was actually pretty brilliant, especially considering those views of the Oakland Hills. Mt. Davis may not have single-handedly ruined the stadium, but I’d say it largely contributed to its inevitable demise. What should have happened in ‘95 was that the city/county remodeled the Coliseum the way that they did for the Warriors (Oakland Arena was a well-kept and more than viable arena up to the very day that the Warriors left it), and they should have built an entirely SEPARATE football stadium for the Raiders. In the long run, Oakland would have at least kept the A’s and Raiders and may even had been able to attract an MLS team. But that would’ve been too much to imagine for Oakland city leadership at that time smh.

First time seeing a game at Angels stadium was shocked how immaculate it was compared to the coliseum.

ok you missed alot things to would go under the Heading why we are Here from 1982 to 1984 the Oakland Invaders called it home , so no improvements could be made First when Walther Hass purchase the team , in 1982 the suites were add and they did overhaul the concourse , Funny thing was alot of things Al Davis demanded to be done we done Second every time when a discussion of converting the stadium to a modern baseball only stadium came up, everyone in government cried you cant touch it cause the Raiders might comeback Third when Schott and Harrlesen purchased they took tours of Coors Field and wanted to adapt those to the stadium, that got ruined by Mount Davis One item everyone seems to have forgotten or never noticed was the original lease for the Raiders was for 20 years so by the end of the lease their would be a modern facility in place , similar to what New York did or what Cincinnati did with their teams

If you can build that tower of doom called Mt. Davis, you can remodel the coliseum and modernize it. Is it expensive? Sure what isn't expensive in the bay area??? But I can guarantee whatever the projected costs of a new ballpark are near JLS, it will wind up costing more. They A's like the city Oakland itself live in the shadow of SF. Giant's ballpark is on the water, our ballpark has to be on the water. Silly but it's true. 5-6 years after it opens it will be sold out. First time the A's have a rebuild, attendance will drop. If crime in Oakland isn't addressed attendance will drop. The shiny new object attention span is always short lived. I love the A's - whatever they decide I wish them well!

Are baseball fans able to access mount Davis? I see you tubers at games roaming around the stadium but I never seen them in mount Davis

Back in 1968 my 8th grade class made a field trip to Sacramento and the Capitol. Inside there was a room with exhibits in miniature of all the counties and something about each county; one for Alameda was of the Arena and Coliseum. At that time, Oakland had poached the A's from Kansas City, was in the process of poaching the hockey Seals from San Francisco and Cow Palace, and had designs to do the same with the Warriors. The Coliseum is out of date, the Raiders have moved again, the A's thinking about it, the Warriors are back in San Francisco with Chase Center. It's like karma!

My Davis ruined it. The sump pumps were never reinstalled.

Been going there since the 70’s, the magic is gone, it’s a shithole, literally. A’s deserve better!

Al Davis did all of this just for some damn luxury boxes. Even moving them to LA to another old shitty stadium in a bad part of town as well.

I’ve been to the Oakland Coliseum only once and that was for an A’s Orioles game in July 1996. The highlight of the night was the Macarena. I was 12 then and had no idea Mt. Davis was brand new.

The coliseum was only designed for football while the Raiders were part of the AFL before the merger with the NFL. It was not designed for baseball in the first place. We can probably blame poor ownership from both sports for not putting much money into maintaining the structure, instead having the taxpayers foot the bill.

True about Dodger Stadium, it reminded me of an old retro diner, like a timewarp in the best possible way.

So what is the argument going forward? Do we support HT project, or do we hope someone can come in (which I think there was a rumored proposal recently) and try and re-do the Oakland Coliseum from the ground up? I also agree with BEN ALPERS, Mt Davis ruined the scenery of the Oakland Hills, but also restricted the Coliseum from being renovated for Baseball.

Vaguely remember original coliseum . Nobody thought it was great before mt.davis & to an extent it’s over stated how it ruined the park for baseball. Still, it wasn’t good. Biggest problem is the ownership and fan apathy.

I agree with you. Whether it's coincidental or not, once Mount Davis went up, the stadium started to show its age quickly.

The Braves have had 3 stadiums in the same time frame lol

Most of time they didn’t use Mount Davis for football too.

I'd rather see the east hills like I used to then a tarp.

I Miss the ice plant and the view of the hills - the million dollar scoreboard!

Not just Mt Davis ruined the coliseum, but the neighborhood around it is dangerous. Oakland never spruced it up. It would've been nice to go to a nearby bar or restaurant after the game and not feel like your life was in danger.

Coliseum…..looks like a toilet with the seat up

Let's put the blame where it belongs. What ruined the Coliseum were Mt. Davis and skinflint owners who did not field successful teams except for brief periods.Believe it or not, a large percentage of fans would rather have good baseball than good food at the ballpark.

Major eye sore is what mt.davis is that whole ice plant area they could've added like picnic areas stomper shape ice plants etc

Rogers Center is FINALLY getting a facelift too.

They did everything on the cheap . A new stadium should’ve been built for the the Raiders.

Need to put race track there, there's enough room but the Nimbys wouldn't put up with the racecar noise

Brodie - as usual, you make great points. The biggest flaw of course is the massive foul territory! The foul territory is mentioned all the time, but it rarely is talked about as something that pushes the fans back, further from the action than any other park in MLB! This problem cannot be fixed. The A's have filled in some seats (Diamond Level etc) but this does not bring the rest of the fans any closer! We need a ballpark designed for baseball only, with every aspect designed for baseball. Howard Terminal is that ballpark!

The basic design of the coliseum will never get better. The foul territory keeps fans so far away from the action. Improvements won't change that

great video!

Why did Mt. Davis even need to be built the raiders already played at the coliseum until leaving Oakland the first time. It already had a football configuration.

Actually #8 woul dbe New Comiskey in Chicago but I'll give you a pass since most forget about that one.

There is a greater difference between the 29th best baseball stadium and the 30th best baseball stadium (yes, the Oakland Coliseum) than there is between the best baseball stadium and the 29th best baseball stadium.

I disagree. Those bleacher seats were the best part of the game. We would stomp our feet against the floor of the bleachers and make some crazy noise. Also the $2 ticket was pretty good as well!

What other team has signed great vet players on short deals and traded away up and coming stars so often

No simply put they get the good players while there young use them up and when it’s time to pay they never have enough money to pay them the A’s as an organization related to much on loyalty from the ppl they had within fans included there’s still plenty of A’s fans but with the team having no talent and no big free agent wanting to go there well you just are where u are now

That wasted tax payer money ruined that stadium and bringing back the raiders now obviously for no reason

Reading between the lines, my take is that Ownership is the biggest problem. How is selling the team coming along?

THE ARMPIT OF ALL THE STADIUMS .....

Mt Davis was the start of what ruined the Coliseum.

The DOWN-TURN of the Coliseum ALL started when the 'Raiders' came back to Oakland. And when Fischer took over, was the icing on the cake.

Are there any good seats in this dump? It seems like 75% of the seats are a mile away from the field and like most multipurpose stadiums a lot of the seats are pointing the wrong way for baseball.

If they got rid of Mount Davis it would improve it a lot

Mt Davis!!! It looks like Howdy-Doody!!!!!!!!!!

Who cares about the stadium! Just give me a good team and be in playoffs often and I'll attend more regularly.

Can't they take Mt Davis down? It may not be ideal the Coliseum but it could be renovated a bit but Fisher won't invest so let him leave. Vegas doesn't want him or his team. I feel forA's fans, but with an owner like this, I'd invest in a new team to root for....

what a dump, that monstrosity is older than i am

Don’t forget: the Dodgers own Dodger Stadium.

Folks the property owner is who you should blame for this deplorable facility,Almeda county runs this stadium on the cheap,that’s not okay, come on man

New White Sox park is number 8 ?

Mount Davis did ruin it. It’s an eyesore and takes up millions from the city that could’ve gone toward actual improvements.

What if??? What if the powers-that-be had simply vetoed Mt Davis and never built it to begin with??????????

You are wrong. The Coliseum has always been terrible opposing football teams - that was an local advantage.

If only the A’s could fix the coli up big time. No need to move

This whole thing with the athletics is disgusting 💔🤬

Mt Davis did ruin the park can't see the great view

Hypothetically, had the Raiders never returned to Oakland in '95, the A's search for a new stadium would have been just as much a reality as it is in the here and now. I loved going to A's and Raider games, but the only thing attractive about the coliseum in pre-'95 baseball configuration WAS the bleachers! Mt. Davis?? Child, please! Love my A's, but it drove me nuts when I heard A's fans whine, "I can't see the Oakland hills anymore." You wanna see hills, go to the hills. Wanna watch baseball, come to the coliseum. It's like experiencing children that grab bright shinny things off the ground and then cry about it when we tell them no. Ugh!

It has always had too much foul territory.aThe hot dogs are bad.you need binoculars anywhere beyond field level. Exit traffic is horrible. A black hole!

The county let it rot is what happened

T20 world cup 2024 possible venue

Rooted in Oakland......

Raiders to that question. /

Wrong …. Mt. Davis killed the Coliseum.

One thing Mount Davis did the Coliseum was take away the view of the hills above Oakland.

People just have no faith in the owners making the moves necessary to win. You need to have a top 10 payroll, period. The only people who care about the A's right now are absolute baseball nerds. The Giants had Barry Bonds and 70 home run seasons when they got Pac Bell. You need those bandwagon fans to sell out consistently.

Yeah, it is. Without that eyesore, the Coliseum would be worth salvaging.

Age Mt Davis Plumbing

Wait - Angels Stadium is being replaced??? When was this announced?

Sewerage problems

Below sea level? So what … nothing new.

In my opinion the coliseum is beautiful but in an ugly way

Jesus is the only way into Heaven. Ask Him into your life, cleanse you from ALL unrighteousness. Make Him your Lord & your Savior. One day YOU will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

City of Oakland n fans ruined ball park

the best thing that can happen to the Coliseum is when they clear it out and blow it up. That place needs to be demolished, not torn down just blow it up once the A's are done there.