The A's: Going South?

Looks like the Oakland A's might be leaving for Fremont, California:

The Oakland Athletics are expected to announce next week they will build a new stadium in suburban Fremont, Calif., the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News reported Tuesday, citing sources close to negotiations for the deal.

The newspapers reported the team wants to acquire a 143-acre site near the former Baylands Raceway Park and build a privately-funded 36,000-seat ballpark at an estimated cost of $300 million. The property is currently owned by the city of Fremont and is leased to high-tech firm Cisco Systems.

Oakland officials don't seem too upset:

Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente said he wasn't surprised by the development, and told the newspaper it was unlikely the city would get into a bidding war to keep the A's in the city limits.

"Teams and team owners look for the best deals for themselves, and that's understandable,'' he told the Chronicle. "There's nothing we can do about it.''

I'll be interested to see what type of land deal the A's get from Fremont officials.