Podcast Summary

Podcast: Pablo Torre Finds Out
Episode: How to Fight the Cheapest Owner in American Sports
Date: June 6, 2024
Host: Pablo Torre (with reporting by Joel Anderson)
Main Theme: An investigative, story-driven journey into the Oakland Athletics’ ongoing ownership debacle—how John Fisher, widely considered Major League Baseball’s “cheapest” owner, has alienated fans, led to protest movements like the “reverse boycott,” and may soon move the A’s from Oakland to Las Vegas. The episode explores protest culture, fan resistance, and the emotional cost of losing a beloved sports team.

Episode Overview

• Purpose:
  The episode dives deep into the saga of the Oakland Athletics under owner John Fisher—a billionaire accused of under-investment, neglect, and an impending relocation of the team to Las Vegas. Pablo Torre tasks acclaimed podcaster/report Joel Anderson (a Bay Area local) to uncover whether the notorious fan “reverse boycott” and rumors of player punishment (aka “wristband-gate”) are truly making a difference, or are a lost cause in modern sports capitalism.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Oakland A’s Reverse Boycott

• Background:
  With owner John Fisher threatening to move the A’s from Oakland, fans staged a “reverse boycott”—packing the usually empty Oakland Coliseum to spend money as a protest, rather than withholding it (01:21-01:38).
• Goal:
  To draw attention and shame Fisher and MLB for abandoning a loyal, embattled fanbase that’s already lost the Raiders and Warriors (01:40-02:30).

2. John Fisher: Nepotism, Anonymity, and Cheapness

• Owner Profile:
  • Son of Gap founder, inherited wealth (“Nepobaby”)
    “He failed up. …The way they got involved in pro sports is when John convinced his dad to buy an interest in the Giants.” – Joel Anderson (10:55)
  • Avoids media, extremely reclusive (10:04)
  • Has a reputation for being the most aloof and careless owner in baseball (09:45)
• Operational Approach:
  • Has not invested in payroll or stadium upkeep—last in MLB by payroll (09:28-09:55)
  • Infamously cut $400 weekly minor-league player stipends during the pandemic, only to backpedal under public pressure (16:24-16:59)
  • Ownership story highlights the “failing upward” inherited privilege endemic in sports ownership (10:55-11:44)

3. Fan Resistance: The Last Dive Bar and Protest Culture

• The Last Dive Bar:
  • A superfan collective leading the charge against Fisher, named after a NYT description of the Coliseum as “baseball’s last dive bar.”
    “It just says, baseball's last dive bar, Oakland Coliseum. …the minute we dropped that, it went nuts.” – Brian Johansson (25:41)
  • Not an actual bar, but a fan group making banners, wristbands, and radical merch (26:12-26:21)
• Community:
  • Diehard fans like Brian Johansson become quasi-celebrities in the near-empty stadium (31:06)
  • Fans bring their own food to games to avoid giving Fisher more money—“BYO Burrito” protest (29:46-30:35)

4. Player Involvement & Wristband-Gate

• Wristbands:
  • “I Stand with Oakland” and “Last Dive Bar” merch, surreptitiously worn by four A’s players (04:11-04:47)
• Rumors:
  • Speculation that these players were punished (benched, released, traded, demoted) as retaliation for siding with fans (04:53-06:28)
• The Investigation:
  • Through interviews with players, translations, and statements, Joel Anderson reports that actual evidence for targeted punishment is dubious. Players like Brent Rooker deny repercussions (40:35-41:24).
  • Official statement (41:24):
    “The suggestion that we would move players based on their opinions of a fan group is absurd. Winning games at this level is hard enough without worrying about who's wearing a wristband.” – A’s GM David Forst

5. The Coliseum Experience: Protest in Practice

• The Stadium:
  • Fans and even former players (Bruce Maxwell, first MLB player to kneel with Kaepernick) describe the stadium as dilapidated and actively hostile—sewage smells, crumbling facilities (19:57-21:15)
  • “The septic issue is probably… the most notable thing about being on the field as a player. …You can smell the sewage through the vents in the dugout, and it’s there for days on end.” – Bruce Maxwell (19:57)
• Reverse Boycott in Action:
  • Joel attends a game with Brian (Last Dive Bar) and experiences the protest first hand: makeshift camaraderie, bringing outside food, “cell flags,” and mutual suspicion of any team action as malicious.
  • “Clearly this is a family network, correct?” (25:19) – riff on the raw emotion at play.

6. The Failed Oakland Stadium Deal

• Failed Redevelopment:
  • Multiple attempts at new stadiums (notably Howard Terminal) fell through—Fisher unwilling to close a $97M gap despite his billions (27:33-28:02)
  • Fisher’s refusal to invest became the final straw for many, sparking vitriol and direct action.

7. Why Protest? Why Stay?

• Hopeless Optimism:
  • Even as fans realize their efforts probably won’t save the team, they view protest as essential.
    “Sometimes you just protest because you’re mad. …Often, I would say, when you do go out to protest, you kind of accept the fact that you don’t know if you’re going to win.” – Joel Anderson (44:46)
  • The looming move to Vegas is both heartbreak and cautionary tale.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Fan Loyalty:
  “I haven’t come across a franchise or a fan base that is more connected than this one, even though things are pretty damn terrible right now.” – Joel Anderson (03:26)
• On Ownership:
  “Dork Fisher refuses to spend on players, perpetually sitting out free agency… He refuses to upgrade the stadium, perhaps obviously… John Fisher can’t really read the room, and then he blames the room for being empty.” – Pablo Torre (15:52)
• On the Coliseum:
  “You can smell the sewage through the vents in the dugout, and it’s there for days on end. …It’s kind of degrading, honestly.” – Bruce Maxwell (19:57-20:39)
• On the Stadium Stalemate:
  “A guy worth $3 billion can’t sit there and just pay the $97 million… They do not want to spend their money and they’re billionaires and the fans don’t benefit.” – Brian Johansson (28:02)
• On Protest’s Broader Message:
  “If Major League Baseball would treat us like this, in spite of our loyalty and the culture and the history of this franchise here in this town… It could definitely be you.” – Joel Anderson (45:55)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:21: The “reverse boycott” explained; fans protest by showing up, not staying home
• 04:11-06:28: Wristband-gate: fan-player alliance and rumors of retribution
• 09:28: The A’s historically rock-bottom payroll
• 16:24: Fisher’s minor-league stipend controversy during the pandemic
• 19:57-21:15: Bruce Maxwell describes the dire stadium conditions (“septic issue”)
• 25:41: How “The Last Dive Bar” fan group began; NYT reference
• 27:33-28:20: Oakland’s failed Howard Terminal stadium deal—the $97M gap
• 29:46-30:35: Protest tactics: BYO burritos instead of concessions
• 31:06: Superfan Brian’s celebrity status at A’s games
• 41:24: A’s respond officially: “absurd” to think they’ve punished wristband-wearing players
• 44:46: Why protest when victory is unlikely?

Conclusion

The episode paints a vivid, empathetic portrait of Oakland A’s fandom under siege—caught between a miserly owner, MLB indifference, and the grief of likely losing their team. Amid rumor, failed activism, and relentless neglect, Joel Anderson and Pablo Torre explore whether protest can comfort, if not transform, a fanbase on the brink. The message is both local and universal: loyal communities can be shattered by remote, profit-driven ownership, and fighting back, even in vain, still has meaning.