SAN JOSE—Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig has brushed back San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed’s formal request last week for a personal meeting to resolve issues holding up the Oakland A’s desired move to his city.
And Selig in his April 4 response added that Reed’s reference in an April 2 letter to “additional litigation” over the proposed A’s move “is neither productive nor consistent with process that the Athletics have initiated under our rules.”
Selig wrote that the committee he appointed more than four years ago to study the A’s plan for a downtown San Jose ballpark has been in “frequent contact” with the city.
“If you believe there is additional information that Major League Baseball should consider in completing its assessment,” Selig wrote, “the best way to proceed at this time continues to be for you to contact Robert Starkey or other members of the committee.”
Reed said Wednesday that he would follow the commissioner’s suggestion to set up a meeting with Starkey, a sports consultant and former accountant who had worked with Selig on stadium issues for the Minnesota Twins. Reed called it encouraging to get a response from the commissioner.
“It’s movement, it’s a little something,” Reed said. “I’d just like to have that conversation. What are the problems?”
