A's Manager Mark Kotsay Discusses Fans' 'Reverse Boycott' amid Las Vegas Buzz

Oakland Athletics manager Mark Kotsay expressed his support for fans planning to attend the "reverse boycott" during Tuesday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Per the Associated Press, Kotsay is applauding the fans for doing what they can in an attempt to keep the franchise in Oakland amid rumors about a potential move to Las Vegas:

"Being here since 2004, which was my first year in this stadium, the bond that you get with this group of fans and fan base, you know the passion, you know the love regardless like I always talk about of the numbers. The difference this season is they're in an uncharted territory with the direction of this organization. It's only right for them to come out tomorrow and in one aspect peacefully display their feelings toward this organization possibly moving and the hope on our end is they also support the players, and I think they will."

Former A's season-ticket holder Stu Clary originally announced plans for the reverse boycott in April with the goal of packing Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum to show Major League Baseball and "that us fans are not the problem" with the attendance issues.

Athletics president Dave Kaval announced on April 20 the team finalized a deal to purchase a 49-acre plot of land in Las Vegas to build a new stadium.

Since that announcement, though, a number of obstacles have popped up that make a potential move uncertain. Vegas lawmakers have yet to approve a proposal that would provide $380 million in public funding as part of the proposal for a $1.5 billion stadium.

The Nevada Senate held a special session on Monday to continue debates over the public funding bill, but the session ended without moving forward on the proposal. Casey Harrison of the Las Vegas Sun noted a special subcommittee will meet at 9 a.m. local time on Tuesday "to hear an informal presentation on the proposed project's economic impact and surrounding infrastructure."

The A's have been stripping their roster of its best players in recent years with the goal of saving money. Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Sean Murphy and Frankie Montas are among the players who have been traded over the past two years.

The Athletics announced that attendance of 2,064 for a May 15 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks was their smallest home crowd since September 1979, per Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Oakland's average home attendance of 8,555 fans is, by far, the lowest in MLB. The Miami Marlins rank 29th with 11,568 fans per game.

Tuesday's planned reverse boycott comes amid the team's hottest stretch of the season. The A's have won six consecutive games, including Monday's 4-3 victory over a Rays team that leads MLB with a 48-21 record.

Kotsay is in his second season as Oakland's manager. The 47-year-old played four of his 16 MLB seasons with the A's from 2004 to '07.