A's Owner Lew Wolff is "very confident" MLB is close to clearing the way for his team to move to San Jose, according to a source cited by Stiglich & Seipel of the OAKLAND TRIBUNE. The "latest wave of enthusiasm came Saturday after yet another unconfirmed report surfaced on Twitter that the league will grant the A's permission to move to San Jose in February." USA Today's Bob Nightengale tweeted, "All signs and top MLB sources say that the Athletics will be granted permission by Feb to move to San Jose." However, MLB sources said that "nothing has changed" and no decision has been made. A source close to Wolff said that the A's owner "is very confident that the A's (deal) was going to happen." The source said the confidence is based on "communication between Wolff and (MLB commissioner Bud) Selig, which is very frequent." Wolff could not be reached for comment, and A's Dir of PR Bob Rose said that the team "continues to wait for Major League Baseball's report on the A's stadium situation and would have no further comment until then." MLB team owners are "expected to discuss the A's move at a meeting Jan. 11 to 12 in Scottsdale." A move to San Jose "would have to be approved by three-quarters of the owners," but sources said that they "may not end up voting until a settlement with the Giants can be negotiated" (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 12/25).
WAITING FOR SOME CLARITY: After trading P Gio Gonzalez to the Nationals Thursday, A's GM Billy Beane reiterated that he believes a decision on the team's future "will come soon." He said that until then, the team "cannot realize sustained success in the AL West." The A's '11 payroll was $70M, and Beane last month said that the team "lost money, largely because the payroll had gone up from $52 million in 2010." Sources confirmed that Oakland "did lose $1 million to $2 million, despite getting revenue-sharing checks of $30 million-plus" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 12/24).
