MLB will never come back to Oakland, Rickey Henderson says

OAKLAND, Calif. ( KRON ) — The Oakland A’s played at the Coliseum for the final time on Thursday, and the man who is perhaps the franchise’s greatest legend says it will be the last MLB game ever played in The Town.

Rickey Henderson told the San Francisco Chronicle that he does not believe MLB will ever return to Oakland. City officials have publicly floated the idea of an expansion team coming to Oakland.

“They ain’t going to bring one. Basically, baseball won’t get one here ever again, I’m telling you, I talked to the commissioner. He said all along they won’t come out here, I don’t care who buys the team or whatever happens,” Henderson told the Chronicle. “We just messed up. We did a whole lot of damage. What can you say?”

If MLB does choose to expand, Oakland will have competition from other cities. In 2023, MLB players were asked what the best city for a new team would be, and a majority said Nashville .

Henderson is an Oakland native who established himself as one of the best leadoff hitters in MLB history. He and fellow A’s legend Dave Stewart threw out the first pitch before Thursday’s game.

Emotions were flowing at the Coliseum from fans watching the A’s play in their hometown for the last time, but Henderson told the Chronicle he was not sad.

“I can’t be sad,” he said, “I have too much money, and I did too much here, all these great things here. I’m more happy than sad. Maybe later it will hit you when it’s all said and done. But, honestly, today I’m going to have fun.”

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