Sunday, December 12, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Mayor makes pitch for team in Las Vegas; baseball listens

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman walks Saturday through the lobby of the hotel playing host to Major League Baseball's winter meetings in Anaheim, Calif., accompanied by two Las Vegas showgirls and an Elvis impersonator. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Saying he was "looking for a wink or a nod or a handshake" that would confirm his city as the next site for franchise relocation, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman met with officials of Major League Baseball at a private party Saturday night and got the affirmation he was seeking.

"I think I got the handshake," Goodman said after spending almost two hours visiting with baseball officials at The Catch, a restaurant near Angel Stadium of Anaheim. He declined to identify the "high-ranking official" who gave him the affirming handshake, although Bob DuPuy, Major League Baseball's president and chief operating officer, was to be in attendance at the social get-together for baseball executives.

"It was a wonderful meeting. It was great casual conversation with the right people," Goodman said. "My opinion is we made a very good impression today."

Goodman arrived Saturday afternoon, with an Elvis impersonator and two showgirls, and made a barnstorming appearance at the Anaheim Marriott to sell reporters attending baseball's winter meetings on the possibility of a franchise moving to Las Vegas in the near future. The mayor met in his office for 1 1/2 hours Wednesday with two officials of the Florida Marlins, who are struggling with the city of Miami on the construction of a new stadium.

That meeting, along with positive national press this week regarding the city's potential for success as a site for a major-league franchise, spurred Goodman to make the impromptu trip to the meetings.

While the afternoon visit was more style, the evening setting provided an opportunity for Goodman to present Las Vegas' substance.

"I'm coming away believing we are way, way beyond just being on (baseball's) radar," Goodman said.

Asked what was next for Las Vegas' interests in someday securing a franchise, Goodman said, "It's time to get down to serious business on Monday and figure out the best way to approach this respectfully and intellectually."

The mayor and the Marlins are expected to talk again, Goodman said earlier Saturday. The Marlins are looking to build a 38,000-seat stadium adjacent to the Orange Bowl in Miami and have offered to pay $192 million of the projected $420 million cost. However, the deal hit a snag when the Marlins and Miami officials couldn't agree on who would pay for any cost overrun.

Goodman said he also has been contacted recently by two other unnamed teams -- "They really don't want me saying who they are, at this point," he said -- about Las Vegas' viability to support major-league baseball.

It has been reported the Oakland Athletics and Minnesota Twins have had issues regarding their home stadiums, while the Tampa Bay Devil Rays suffer from poor attendance.

Goodman is targeting the construction of a 35,000-seat stadium downtown, possibly on 61 acres of vacant land, which he believes would revitalize the area. The stadium would feature either a retractable roof or an innovative sunscreen that Goodman said would "keep the sun out and let the fresh air in."

Financing of the facility, which could cost upward of $500 million, has not been discussed.

"If we know we're at the top (of baseball's list), we can hire a consultant to come in and tell us what we need to do and how to do it the right way," Goodman said. "If it were to happen, I would pray that the gamers (gaming industry) would buy into it by buying suites, corporate boxes, season tickets."

In addition to visiting with baseball officials about possible franchise relocation, Goodman's group also pitched the idea of someday hosting the winter meetings in Las Vegas, with Rossi Ralenkotter, president and chief executive officer of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, leading that effort.

The 2005 winter meetings will be held in Dallas.