The Tarps Are Coming Off In Oakland

Your wish is my command!

Those are a few words Oakland Athletics fans would have never expected to come from the front office of the East Bay’s baseball franchise, the Oakland A’s. However, your wish is being granted.
No the ownership group didn’t decide on a location in Jack London Square for a new stadium to keep the team in Oakland, but they did agree to take the tarps off of the third deck of the coliseum, minus the tarps that cover Mt. Davis. Of note, the third deck already has a few sections behind home plate that are called the “Value Deck” where you can purchase a ticket that includes free food and beverages. Those seats will now be apart of the “View Level” seating which is the entire bowled section of the third deck.

Here is a tweet from the Oakland Athletics official twitter handle @Athletics – Due to strong demand, additional View Level seating is now available for #Athletics ALDS games #OAKtober http://atmlb.com/188XA4y - 12:44 PM - 17 Sep 2013.

Last year the A’s ownership group noted they would take off the tarps on the third deck if the team made the ALCS, although the note was made after the team was already down 0-2 to the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS. The team would push a Game 5 at home, but would eventually lose to those same Tigers, who ended up losing in the World Series to the San Francisco Giants, the A’s cross bay rival.

My assumption is, if the A’s move on beyond the American League Divisional Series to the American League Championship Series (ALCS) or the World Series the tarps will remain off, and possibly more tarps will be coming off of Mt. Davis, in an attempt to gain more revenue.

So what does this mean?

First off, it means more seats for people looking to go to a playoff game in the Bay Area.
The current capacity, and will be for the remainder of the regular season of the O.Co Coliseum is 35,067 plus standing room only tickets. For the ALDS and likely the Wild Card game or other series in the playoffs, the attendance figures will be bumped up to near 44,000 seats plus standing room only.

Secondly, it means that the fans and fan base that supports the A’s is growing in numbers and their voices are beginning to be heard. Well at least their dollars are willing to seen.

The seats in the third deck are starting at $35 for the ALDS and will continue to increase if the team extends its post-season run.

Third, this means the A’s are giving their fan base a shot as packing the house, like it used to be in the early 2000’s and before that, a few more times once the post season begins.

So A’s fans, and baseball fans alike, now is your chance to get tickets, which went on sale Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 10 a.m.

To purchase tickets online you can visit www.OaklandAthletics.com/tickets, you can also visit their box offices at the O.Co Coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

With less than two weeks until the post season begins, it’s time to put on your rally cap and root for your team. The playoffs are upon us.