Post by LVfan on Jun 25, 2023 6:44:01 GMT -8
Why moving the A's from Oakland to Las Vegas make sense based on DMA ranking despite the argument that Las Vegas is too small.
1) Only the mega media markets of the New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago DMAs merit two MLB teams. The Bay Area does not come close to qualifying*. So perhaps moving the A's is MLB's way of recognizing economic realities today as well as diversifying geographically.
In fact, after the big 3, the following markets are ranked ahead of San Franciso-San Jose-Oakland: Philadelphia (#4), Dallas-Fort Worth (#5), Atlanta (#6), Houston (#7), Washington, D.C. (Hagerstown) (#8), Boston (Manchester) (#9).
2) Comparing the Bay Area DMA (#10) to the Las Vegas DMA (#40) is not valid for A's viewership.
The Bay Area DMA region consists of a majority of Giants fans. To more accurately compare DMA ranking, most A's fans within the DMA are in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. If they were in their own DMA market, their ranking would be #35. That does not even account for recent population declines in both counties. Therefore, the TV markets for A's viewership of Las Vegas and Oakland and vicinity are pretty close in size when considering specific DMA markets, which are separate from viewing areas.
3) Cities close to the Las Vegas DMA rank support a MLB team - specifically Kansas City (#33) with the Royals, Cincinnati (#36) with the Reds, and Milwaukee (#38) with the Brewers. Although these cities are slightly ahead of Las Vegas in DMA rank, in the bigger picture not related to DMA rank, Las Vegas has significantly more tourist traffic to offset any differences.
4) Although not related to DMA, the proximity to Southern California opens up a huge nearby broadcast market. Las Vegas remains an extremely popular location for Southern Californians even in the summer. With the high speed train, tourism will increase. While the A's will never encroach into Dodger, Angel, or Padres fanbases, just getting a small percentage of viewers in this huge market will be substantial. With the tourism from Southern Californians, very likely interest in the A's will increase, even if the Southern California team gets their primary support. Also, many Southern Californians are from other areas and will watch when the A's play their favorite teams.
*The rationale that the Bay Area (#10) does not qualify to host 2 MLB teams, unlike the top 3 markets, is based on historical attendance records according to Baseball Almanac. www.baseball-almanac.com/teams/athlatte.shtml From 1968 to 2022, a 54 year period, the A's attendance has been below American League averages every year, with the exception of 9 years. Even in 1974, their 3-peat year, their attendance was next to last in the American League.
1) Only the mega media markets of the New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago DMAs merit two MLB teams. The Bay Area does not come close to qualifying*. So perhaps moving the A's is MLB's way of recognizing economic realities today as well as diversifying geographically.
In fact, after the big 3, the following markets are ranked ahead of San Franciso-San Jose-Oakland: Philadelphia (#4), Dallas-Fort Worth (#5), Atlanta (#6), Houston (#7), Washington, D.C. (Hagerstown) (#8), Boston (Manchester) (#9).
2) Comparing the Bay Area DMA (#10) to the Las Vegas DMA (#40) is not valid for A's viewership.
The Bay Area DMA region consists of a majority of Giants fans. To more accurately compare DMA ranking, most A's fans within the DMA are in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. If they were in their own DMA market, their ranking would be #35. That does not even account for recent population declines in both counties. Therefore, the TV markets for A's viewership of Las Vegas and Oakland and vicinity are pretty close in size when considering specific DMA markets, which are separate from viewing areas.
3) Cities close to the Las Vegas DMA rank support a MLB team - specifically Kansas City (#33) with the Royals, Cincinnati (#36) with the Reds, and Milwaukee (#38) with the Brewers. Although these cities are slightly ahead of Las Vegas in DMA rank, in the bigger picture not related to DMA rank, Las Vegas has significantly more tourist traffic to offset any differences.
4) Although not related to DMA, the proximity to Southern California opens up a huge nearby broadcast market. Las Vegas remains an extremely popular location for Southern Californians even in the summer. With the high speed train, tourism will increase. While the A's will never encroach into Dodger, Angel, or Padres fanbases, just getting a small percentage of viewers in this huge market will be substantial. With the tourism from Southern Californians, very likely interest in the A's will increase, even if the Southern California team gets their primary support. Also, many Southern Californians are from other areas and will watch when the A's play their favorite teams.
*The rationale that the Bay Area (#10) does not qualify to host 2 MLB teams, unlike the top 3 markets, is based on historical attendance records according to Baseball Almanac. www.baseball-almanac.com/teams/athlatte.shtml From 1968 to 2022, a 54 year period, the A's attendance has been below American League averages every year, with the exception of 9 years. Even in 1974, their 3-peat year, their attendance was next to last in the American League.
