Oakland A's fans in Fremont have put their rally caps on. Nearly 400 of them came together Monday night to show they really do want the team to move to Fremont.
Negotiations broke down last year over where in Fremont to put the stadium, but they have decided to try again.
"We're serious, we believe it's a once in a lifetime opportunity," says Nina Moore from the Fremont Chamber of Commerce.
Their "opportunity" came in the form of bad news -- the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. plant will be closing down because of the economic downturn. But city leaders see the land adjacent to the plant as the perfect place to put a stadium.
"Clearly we want to have both NUMMI and the A's in Fremont, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen and we want to capitalize on the opportunities that we have," says Moore.
"It's too little, too late. They had their chance at bat, they struck out, now it's our turn," says San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed.
Reed is not taking Fremont's second attempt to win the A's too seriously. He points out that the A's owner has said he wants to move the team to San Jose.
"It's good to see the enthusiasm for the A's in Fremont because when they move to San Jose, it's going to be a very short drive for the folks in Fremont to come support the San Jose A's," says Reed.
"I think it was Yogi Berra who said, 'It ain't over, 'til it's over,'" says Fremont Mayor Bob Wasserman.
Wasserman says his city has a lot to offer, especially since Major League Baseball is interested in an East Bay location. The league considers San Jose to be part of San Francisco Giants territory.
Major League Baseball has assigned a committee to look at the different cities. Fremont is hoping this rally will get the committee's attention.
"It would delight me more than I could ever dream of," says Wasserman.
There is no word on when the MLB committee will announce which city it prefers. There is speculation it could be in a couple of weeks.
