Ripley's Believe it or Not!

The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum has had many, many, many name changes over the years, including the short-lived UMAX Coliseum [from June to July of 1993] & every single sports fan in Oakland, California agrees that the stadium is outdated, has bad sewage & is a fire hazard unlike the more modern stadiums you see today [like AT&T Park in San Francisco, California] But, believe it or not, the Coliseum was considered State of the Art back in 1968 when it was first built! I am not making this up! It was a very innovative structure, as it was 21 feet/6 meters below ground level. But not only was it innovative, it was a bargain. It cost just $25 million US to build & maintain the whole place, which translates to $186 Million in 2017. It also provided a home for not just baseball, but for American football & soccer, as the Coliseum was built in the era of Multi-Purpose Stadiums [i.e. the Houston Astrodome & the Seattle Kingdome] where one place would host multiple teams. There is a lot of history in the deathtrap that the Oakland Athletics call home. For example, a player named Rickey Henderson whose home was & still is two miles away from the Coliseum, stole his 939th career stolen base on May 1, 1991, setting the All-Time Major League record. 

Unfortunately there is also some speculation that if the Athletics do not get a new ballpark near the Oakland Waterfront by 2022 [which is when the lease for the Coliseum expires], they may ask MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred for them to move to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. So, in other words, the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum is entering it's final years of existence.

[above] In the Old Configuration you could conceivably look at a beautiful view of the Oakland Hills from the upper decks of the Coliseum while watching baseball!

[below] In the Current Configuration you could conceivably look at an ugly aircraft carrier while watching baseball!