HBT Weekend Wrapup - MLB

You suckers missed the fact that I was blogging spring training all weekend. Don’t try to deny it. I see the web traffic stats. You were spending time with your families or watching that godforsaken Oscars show or something instead of reading my dispatches from Arizona. Shame on you. But I now give you a second chance to catch up:

Mike Trout is happy to be here, just wants to help the ballclub, is taking them one day at a time and all of that rebop.
Mike Scioscia is not very good at keeping secrets.
Matt Kemp: Lord of Hustle.
Nothing to see here. Just a bunch of ballplayers walking down the third base concourse in uniform. And hey, look! Deschutes beer at Tempe Diablo Stadium!
I can’t tell you how happy I am that there will be a major leaguer named “Rubby” soon.
It’s cute watching Arizonans freak out about a few showers and a cloud or two.
In which I ponder the sheer ridiculousness of five million people living in a desert.
So it looks like I’m going to be suing the Cincinnati Reds and Ryan Hanigan over the grievous personal injuries I received at their hands.
I taught a South Korean baseball writer what a footlong chili dog is. I suspect I have made a war more likely as a result.
In which I argued with a man over the fact that Marty Brennaman is not Bob Uecker.

Of course, there was baseball news that didn’t have anything to do with me being a jackass at multiple spring training complexes:

Duke Snider passed away. Joins Mickey. Willie still going strong.
Carlos Gonzalez just cashed in big, so of course it makes sense for the Rockies to put him in the defensive position that makes him less valuable than any other.
Chad Durbin and the Indians get together.
Jason Bay is playing real baseball games again.
Justin Duchscherer is hurt? Shocking.
Miguel Cabrera is almost a go. I worked with someone who got a DUI once. He was in the office the day after his wife bailed him out, so pardon me if I’m not overly impressed with Mr. Cabrera at the moment.
The Yankees are interested in Francisco Liriano? Color me gobsmacked.
Some people say that Adrian Beltre is going to miss only two weeks. Heyman says a month. Who ya gonna believe? Oh, and did I mention that Beltre is represented by Scott Boras?
Rich Harden is still battling injuries. Color me double-gobsmacked.
Kyle McLellan is going to try to replace Adam Wainwright. Kevin Millwood immediately starts Googling “Kyle McLellan.”
Chase Utley is feeling creaky, but the MRI says things are mostly cool. Welcome to what the rest of your 30s are going to feel like, Mr. Utley.
Remember when McNulty got inside Stringer Bell’s apartment after he died and was shocked to find the high art and the weighty reading on the bookshelf and said “who was I chasing?” I sort of feel like that with Jody Gerut. Who was this guy? I mean, crap, if I knew he was this interesting I probably would have paid closer attention.

Four more days of spring training action ahead. Hohokam Stadium and the Cubbies later today. After that I’m gonna visit the White Sox and A’s. Thursday is a wild card, though. Anyone with suggestions of where I should go — ballpark wise, that is — leave them in the comments.

CARSON CITY, Nev. — A bill introduced in the Nevada Legislature would give the Oakland Athletics up to $380 million for a potential 30,000 seat, $1.5 billion retractable roof stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The bulk of the public funding would come from $180 million in transferable tax credits from the state and $120 million in county bonds, which can vary based on interest rate returns. Clark County also would contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

The A’s have been looking for a home to replace Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City for the 1968 season. The team had sought to build a stadium in Fremont, San Jose and finally the Oakland waterfront, all ideas that never materialized.

The plan in the Nevada Legislature won’t directly raise taxes. It can move forward with a simply majority vote in the Senate and Assembly. Lawmakers have a little more than a week to consider the proposal before they adjourn June 5, though it could be voted on if a special session is called.

The Athletics have agreed to use land on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, where the Tropicana Las Vegas casino resort sits. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has said he is disappointed the team didn’t negotiate with Oakland as a “true partner.”

Las Vegas would be the fourth home for a franchise that started as the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-54. It would become the smallest TV market in Major League Baseball and the smallest market to be home to three major professional sports franchises.

The team and Las Vegas are hoping to draw from the nearly 40 million tourists who visit the city annually to help fill the stadium. The 30,000-seat capacity would make it the smallest MLB stadium.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet June 13-15 in New York.

The plan faces an uncertain path in the Nevada Legislature. Democratic leaders said financing bills, including for the A’s, may not go through if Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoes the five budget bills, which he has threatened to do as many of his priorities have stalled or faded in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Under the bill, the Clark County Board of Commissioners would create a homelessness prevention and assistance fund along the stadium’s area in coordination with MLB and the Nevada Resort Association. There, they would manage funds for services, including emergency rental and utility assistance, job training, rehabilitation and counseling services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The lease agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority would be up for renewal after 30 years.

Nevada’s legislative leadership is reviewing the proposal, Democratic state Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager said in a statement.

“No commitment will be made until we have both evaluated the official proposal and received input from interested parties, including impacted community members,” Yeager said.