Manager Bob Melvin is hopeful the Oakland Athletics can make progress on a new ballpark to ensure they do not become the latest team to move out of the city.
MLB on Tuesday instructed the A's "to begin to explore other markets while they continue to pursue a waterfront ballpark in Oakland".
The league said it was "concerned with the rate of progress on the A's new ballpark effort", with a $12billion proposal yet to be approved by the city.
A's president Dave Kaval released a statement saying the team were "committed to succeeding in Oakland" but would follow MLB's directive.
A negative outcome would represent another big blow to the sports scene in Oakland, which has already lost the NFL's Raiders to Las Vegas while the Golden State Warriors of the NBA moved to a new arena in San Francisco.
"With two other sports franchises recently leaving the community, [the team's] commitment to Oakland is now more important than ever," MLB's statement added.
Palo Alto native Melvin took the same tone as he addressed the media ahead of Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
"My job is to go out and play where we are right now," said Melvin, whose A's lead the AL West. "It is unfortunate that a couple of teams have left and certainly we don't want that to happen.
"And I don't think anything that was said today would suggest it's going to. It's just giving MLB and the organisation a few more options to maybe look elsewhere."
The A's moved to Oakland from Kansas City in 1968 but have played at the multi-purpose Coliseum ever since, despite talk of a new ballpark in Oakland for the best part of 20 years.
New York Yankees designate struggling OF Aaron Hicks for assignment
The New York Yankees have decided to cut ties with struggling outfielder Aaron Hicks.
The Yankees designated Hicks for assignment on Saturday before their game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Through 28 games this season, Hicks is slashing just .188/.263/.261 with one home run, two doubles and five RBIS.
Among the 315 major league hitters with at least 75 plate appearances, Hicks' .524 OPS ranks 299th.
It is a costly decision for the Yankees, as Hicks' contract runs through 2025 and the team will be forced to eat nearly $30million remaining on the seven-year, $70m contract he signed in 2019.
The sides agreed to that deal after Hicks enjoyed a career year in 2018, when he hit 27 homers and drove in 79.
In almost four-and-a-half seasons since then, however, the 33-year-old Hicks has managed just 31 home runs while batting .218.
In a corresponding move Saturday, the Yankees selected the contract of outfielder Greg Allen from the minors.
The 30-year-old Allen was acquired in a trade from the Boston Red Sox on Friday and is beginning his second stint with the Yankees after appearing in 15 games for them in 2021.
Astros activate star 2B Altuve for season debut
Jose Altuve will return to the Houston Astros’ lineup for Friday’s game against the Oakland Athletics after the team activated the 2017 American League Most Valuable Player from the injured list.
Altuve has yet to play this season due to a fractured right thumb he sustained while playing for his native Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic on March 19. He underwent surgery on March 22 and was given an eight-week timeline to return.
The eight-time All-Star prepped for his 2023 debut by playing five minor league rehab games over the past week, though he went just 2 for 22 at the plate.
Altuve finished fifth in voting for last season’s AL MVP after finishing with a .300 average, 28 home runs, 103 runs scored and 18 stolen bases in 141 games for the World Series champion Astros.
The 33-year-old’s career .307 batting average ranks third among active players with at least 1,000 plate appearances, trailing only 2022 AL batting champ Luis Arraez and fellow Venezuelan Miguel Cabrera.
Altuve will be counted on to provide a spark to a Houston offense that’s averaging just 4.44 runs per game, 15th in the majors. The Astros currently stand two games behind division-leading Texas in the AL West with a 24-19 record.
Warriors and Knicks stave off elimination
Stephen Curry led a balanced attack with 27 points and the Golden State Warriors notched a season-extending 121-106 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday.
Facing elimination, the defending champion Warriors took the lead late in the second quarter and never trailed again to force the series back to Los Angeles for Game 6 on Friday.
Andrew Wiggins had 25 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Draymond Green had his best game of the series with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, nine boards and four assists.
Gary Payton II (13 points), Jordan Poole (11) and Klay Thompson (10) also reached double figures for Golden State.
The Warriors led by as many as 17 in the third quarter, but the Lakers trimmed the deficit to 104-95 on Austin Reaves' 3-pointer with 5:25 remaining. Curry, however, sank a jumper and a three to put Golden State up 14.
LeBron James scored 25 points and Anthony Davis had 23 and nine rebounds before he left in the fourth quarter after taking what appeared to be an inadvertent elbow to the head from Golden State's Kevon Looney. Davis grabbed his head grimacing before going to the locker room late in the game.
Brunson goes distance as Knicks force Game 6
Jalen Brunson scored 38 points and the New York Knicks kept their season alive with a 112-103 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Brunson played all 48 minutes, shot 12 of 22 from the field and hit 4 of 10 3-pointers while adding nine rebounds and seven assists.
RJ Barrett added 26 points, including four free throws in the final two minutes to preserve the lead, and Julius Randle scored 24 with four threes to get New York within 3-2 in the series.
Jimmy Butler led Miami with 19 points and Bam Adebayo had 18 and eight boards. Duncan Robinson scored 17 points and hit three of his five 3s in the fourth quarter as the eighth-seeded Heat nearly came all the way back after trailing by 19 in the third quarter.
Miami got the deficit down to 103-101 before Isaiah Hartenstein slammed home a follow dunk with 2:07 left. Barrett followed with a pair of free throws and hit another two after Adebayo's dunk to make it 109-103 with under a minute remaining.
The fifth-seeded Knicks will try to force the series back to New York with a road win in Game 6 on Friday.
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