A’s Say They Can’t Pay Rent

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – The Oakland Athletics say they can’t pay their landlord.  The head of the agency that oversees the Oakland Coliseum says the A’s have informed him they had “no ability to pay” the annual $1.2 million rent on the facility.  Henry Gardner tells the Bay Area News Group that the A’s say they’ve been unable to generate revenue because they haven’t used the Coliseum this season. MLB has been in shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. Gardner says the Coliseum is willing to negotiate and waive some items in the Athletics lease, but, “we can’t just say no rent.”
Gardner is the interim executive director of the Coliseum authority.  The A’s have made the payment annually for use of the city- and county-owned baseball stadium. The team could face penalties for failure to pay.