San Jose city officials on Thursday officially shifted their antitrust case against Major League Baseball to a federal appeals court, taking the first step in trying to overturn a federal judge’s decision last year tossing out key legal arguments in the fight over the long-stalled plan to move the Oakland A’s to the South Bay.
In a brief court filing, lawyers for San Jose revealed that they have appealed the ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. San Jose is appealing U.S. District Judge Ronald Whyte’s decision dismissing the city’s arguments that MLB has violated federal antitrust laws by failing to act on the A’s bid to move.
Whyte concluded that baseball’s nearly century-old exemption from antitrust laws overrides the city’s legal arguments. San Jose sued the league last year, contending that MLB has interfered with the city’s interests by refusing for more than four years to act on the A’s bid to move to Silicon Valley.
Phil Gregory, one of San Jose’s lawyers, said he disagrees with Whyte’s conclusion, finding it “hard to believe Major League Baseball is not subject to the same antitrust rules that apply to other sports.”
The judge also recently dismissed other legal claims made under state law, which focus on allegations MLB has undermined San Jose’s economic interests by thwarting the city’s option agreement with the team to buy land for a downtown ballpark. At Whyte’s direction, San Jose’s lawyers on Thursday refiled those claims in Santa Cruz County Superior Court in a separate lawsuit.
The A’s have envisioned building a privately financed ballpark on land near Diridon rail station, not far from the city’s hockey arena. The A’s have been seeking MLB approval for that move since 2009, but it has been held up in large part by the San Francisco Giants, which holds territorial rights to the South Bay.
Court documents filed in recent months show that MLB Commissioner Bud Selig notified A’s owner Lew Wolff in June that the league had rejected the A’s proposal to move to San Jose. But Wolff insists he is moving forward with his quest for a San Jose ballpark. The state court lawsuit seeks to expose Selig’s letter publicly, saying San Jose has been denied access to the key exchange with the A’s.
In the meantime, Oakland city leaders have been working on a plan to keep the A’s.
There is no timetable on how long it will take for the 9th Circuit to act on San Jose’s appeal, ensuring more delays in determining the fate of the A’s plan to move.
Howard Mintz covers legal affairs. Contact him at 408-286-0236 or follow him at Twitter.com/hmintz
