Athletics paint over the Coliseum’s infamous ‘Rooted in Oakland since ’68’ sign – part of

The Athletics removed the infamous large ‘Rooted in Oakland since ’68’ sign from their ballpark Monday as the MLB side continues to force its way out of the city.

The slogan had been painted on the west wall of the Coliseum in 2017 and visible from the nearby Interstate 880. 

It had been a key part of the franchise’s advertising campaign to highlight its commitment to keeping the team in Oakland with a new ballpark. 

However, just seven years later the sign was stripped down with the A’s seemingly Las Vegas-bound. 

The A’s will continue to play at the Coliseum this season on their current lease. The organization is also trying to negotiate a three-year extension on the lease to provide them with a home until their Las Vegas ballpark is ready. 

The Athletics removed the large ‘Rooted in Oakland since ’68’ sign from their ballpark Monday

Fans have protested against the move to Las Vegas, calling for the team to stay in Oakland

The MLB franchise reportedly registered interest in Smith’s Ballpark – home of the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees – according to The Las Vegas Review Journal. 

Front office executives of the A’s met with Steve Starks, the CEO of the company that built Smith’s Ballpark in Salk Lake City in January. 

If a deal is agreed upon, A’s fans will have to make an 11-hour drive (700 miles) from Oakland to watch their team win.

The Athletics’ $1.5billion proposed relocation to Las Vegas was unanimously approved by Major League Baseball team owners in November, cementing the sport’s first relocation since 2005. 

A 75 percent vote of the 30 teams was necessary to make the move, which was endorsed by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred. 

After years of complaints about the Oakland Coliseum and an inability to gain government assistance for a new ballpark in the Bay area, the A’s plan to move to a stadium to be built on the Las Vegas Strip with $380million in public financing approved by the Nevada government. 

The A’s proposed move to Las Vegas was approved by MLB teams and endorsed by commissioner Rob Manfred (pictured) back in November 

A rendering of the Athletics’ proposed ballpark at the Tropicana site in Las Vegas 

Fans held protests throughout last season to keep the franchise in Oakland 

In 2006, the A’s proposed a ballpark in Fremont, about 25 miles south in the East Bay, but abandoned the plan three years later. San Jose, 40 miles south of Oakland, was proposed in 2012, but the San Francisco Giants blocked the site because it was part of that team’s territory.

The A’s chose a site in the Oakland area near Laney College only to have it rejected by the college and neighbors, then focused on the Howard Terminal area of Oakland. While some approvals were gained, a financing plan was never reached.

The team announced April 19 it had purchased land in Las Vegas, then a month later replaced that location with a deal with Bally’s and Gaming & Leisure Properties to build a stadium on the Tropicana hotel site along the Las Vegas Strip.

Nevada’s Legislature and governor approved public financing for a $1.5B, 30,000-seat ballpark with a retractable roof that will be close to Allegiant Stadium, where the NFL’s Oakland Raiders moved to in 2020, and T-Mobile Arena, where the current Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights started play in 2017 as an expansion team.