Brian Sabean rejoins Yankees after 30 years with Giants - MLB

NEW YORK — Brian Sabean is returning to the Yankees, three decades after leaving for San Francisco and watching from afar as his former prospects led New York to four World Series titles in a five-year span.

“Somewhat of a strange twist of fate after 30 years to rejoin the organization that I started in,” Sabean said after the Yankees hired him as executive adviser to GM Brian Cashman.

Now 66, Sabean helped lead the Giants to World Series titles in 2010, `12 and ’14. He was San Francisco’s general manager from 1996 until 2014, then was promoted to executive vice president of baseball operations from 2015-18.

Shifted to an executive vice president role when Farhan Zaidi was hired as president of baseball operations after the 2018 season, Sabean worked under a contract that expired Oct. 31.

“I expected to do more or be more involved. And in some cases, it didn’t turn out that way,” Sabean said. “I still have a great passion for the game and I really have been exposed to almost everything in the game and almost run every department you can in an organization. So I think I needed to be in a place that I could give back, be a mentor, contribute at any level at any time and be an on-call doctor.”

Because of issues involving his extended family, a move to Florida was desirable. The Yankees’ spring training camp and player development complex are in Tampa.

Sabean will report to Cashman and joins former Chicago Cubs GM Jim Hendry in a front office that includes assistant general managers Jean Afterman and Mike Fishman, and vice presidents Damon Oppenheimer (domestic amateur scouting), Kevin Reese (player development) and Tim Naehring (baseball operations). Hendry moved to the Yankees before the 2012 season as a special assignment scout.

“I hope to be a utility tool and voice opinions when needed and work in areas that he may specifically want more thought or advice on,” Sabean said.

A graduate of Eckerd, Sabean was an assistant baseball coach at St. Leo in 1979 and at the University of Tampa from 1980-82, then was Tampa’s head coach in 1983 and ’84.

Sabean worked for the Yankees as a scout in 1985, then as director of scouting from 1986-90 and vice president of player development and scouting from 1990-92. He moved to the Giants in 1993 as assistant to the GM and vice president of scouting/player personnel in 1993 and was promoted to senior vice president of player personnel in 1995.

“I was a link in the chain,” Sabean said, referring to a group that included Gene Michael, George Bradley, Bill Livesey, Mark Newman and George Bradley. “The Tampa consortium, they would call it. It really was a think tank. I look back, we were probably best in class in scouting and player development. To part of that or to watch that grow and then when I left to go to the Giants, see it come to fruition, was extremely gratifying.”

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.