The city of San Jose was expected to petition the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to consider its antitrust lawsuit against Major League Baseball.
It’s the last hope, from a legal standpoint, as the city takes on MLB in its attempt to lure the A’s to the South Bay. In January, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the argument that baseball is violating antitrust laws by blocking the A’s from relocating to San Jose.
The Giants hold territorial rights to Santa Clara County, and those rights can only be overturned by a three-fourths vote of MLB owners. San Jose leaders had indicated in January they would try to petition the U.S. Supreme Court, though odds of a victory at that level seem slim given the court’s previous rulings upholding baseball’s antitrust exemption.
The A’s have distanced themselves from the legal battle since the city first filed its lawsuit in June 2013. Though ownership long has expressed its desire to move to San Jose, the team recently has focused its attention on the possibility of building a new ballpark on the current Coliseum site in Oakland.
That effort is complicated by the fact the Raiders would like to build a new football stadium at the same site. The Raiders also are pursuing a return to Southern California as an option, as they’ve partnered with the San Diego Chargers to possibly build a new stadium in Carson for the teams to share.
