Dave Kaval

David A. Kaval[1] (born October 28, 1975) is an American baseball executive. He is the seventh president of the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball. He previously served as president of Major League Soccer club San Jose Earthquakes and founded the Golden Baseball League.

Dave Kaval
Kaval in 2019
Born (1975-10-28) October 28, 1975
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
EducationStanford University (BA 1998 and MBA 2003)
OccupationSports executive
Years active2003–present
Known forPresident of the Oakland Athletics
SpouseMaria Fredricsson
Children2

Early life and education

Kaval was born on October 28, 1975,[2] to Jim and Paula Kaval.[3] Jim, a member of the Peace Corps and real estate entrepreneur, and Paula, a realtor and school teacher, raised Kaval in Cleveland, Ohio.[3] He is of Slovak and Italian descent.[3] Kaval attended Stanford University and received a Bachelor of Arts in international relations in 1998.[1] He later returned to Stanford for an MBA and did a national security budgets summer internship for the George W. Bush administration.[3]

Career

Early career and the Golden Baseball League

Following Stanford graduation, on June 20, 1998, Kaval and a former classmate began their trip to visit all 30 Major League Baseball ballparks in 38 days.[4][5] The trip ultimately led to the publication of The Summer that Saved Baseball which chronicled their journey.[5][6]

Kaval founded the independent Golden Baseball League in 2003 as part of a class project.[7] The teams were run on just a $90,000 salary cap per season.[8] In October 2010, Kaval left to become the president of Major League Soccer team San Jose Earthquakes which raised questions as to the future of the league.[9] Those questions became answered when the league merged with two other leagues the year after Kaval's departure and ultimately ceased operations in 2012.[10]

San Jose Earthquakes

Kaval was named president of the San Jose Earthquakes in October 2010, taking over from Michael Crowley.[11] During his time with the Earthquakes, the team won the 2012 Supporters' Shield, but failed to make the playoffs in every other season he oversaw.[12] Despite numerous delays, the team was able to open Earthquakes Stadium in February 2015, which was the first soccer-specific stadium for the team.[13][14][15][16]

It was announced in June 2017 that Kaval was replaced as team president by Tom Fox.[17][18]

Oakland Athletics
Kaval with Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf at Oakland City Hall during the 2018 season

On November 17, 2016, Kaval was named the seventh president in Oakland Athletics history.[19] Kaval initially made a positive impression with fans upon assuming the position when he attempted to be more open to fans through scheduled meeting times, a tactic he previously employed with the San Jose Earthquakes.[19] The A's also made fan and capital improvements to the Oakland Coliseum such as removing tarps which covered the Coliseum's third deck, creating a food truck rally with outdoor games, and investing $1M in upgrades to an all-access club called Shibe Park Tavern.[20][21] Kaval's COO, Chris Giles, also spearheaded a membership campaign, "A's Access", which granted members with benefits that surpassed that of previous season ticket holders.[22]

New ballpark efforts
Main article: Oakland Ballpark

Kaval, who successfully built a stadium for the Earthquakes, sought to build a stadium for the Oakland A's. In September 2017, Kaval announced that the A's had selected site near downtown Oakland owned by the Peralta Community College District as their desired location after considering the current Coliseum site and a Howard Terminal site at the Port of Oakland.[23] The selection was immediately met with local opposition from students, teachers, and the nearby communities of Chinatown and Eastlake.[23][24] The selection was also brought concern from Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf and former mayor Ron Dellums as the move would have displaced low-income and immigrant families and businesses from the surrounding area.[23][25] Despite the concerns, Kaval attempted to move forward with the site and targeted an opening during the 2023 Major League Baseball season.[26] In December 2017, the Peralta Community College District board turned down the A's proposal, leaving Kaval to backtrack to his lesser preferred locations.[27][28]

Nearly a year after the Peralta site rejection, Kaval and the A's announced the Howard Terminal site at the Port of Oakland as their primary focus in November 2018.[29] Concerns and community opposition to the project was voiced primarily from the maritime industry,[30][31][32] but also saw transportation[33][34] and environmental[35][36] groups become vocal about the site choice. Kaval progressed the project and on July 20, 2021, the Oakland City Council voted 6-1 (with one abstain vote) to approve a non-binding term sheet to continue negotiations with the A's for the new ballpark.[37] However, Kaval said that the team did not agree to those terms since it was not the term sheet the team provided.[37] Subsequently, on April 20, 2023, it was reported that the Athletics had purchased a parcel of land from Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa for a new stadium in Las Vegas, near the Las Vegas Strip; subsequently, Oakland mayor Sheng Thao announced the cessation of negotiations with the team regarding the Howard Terminal site, effectively ending the proposed ballpark project.[38]

Personal life

Kaval is married to Maria Fredricsson, whom he met his first day at Stanford.[39] Kaval is a resident of Menlo Park, California, where the couple have raised their two daughters.[40]

He serves on a number of boards, including the Bay Area Council and Rocketship Education, in addition to the National Governing Board of the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) and the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO). He is also a lecturer in management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) where he teaches sports management.

References
  1. "David A.Kaval Lecturer in Management". Stanford Graduate School of Business. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  2. Jennings, Duffy (December 2015). "Meet Dave Kaval, San Jose Earthquakes". jointventure.org. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  3. Almond, Elliott (December 27, 2016). "Dave Kaval: The man commissioned to save the Oakland Athletics". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved February 25, 2020. His father's roots are Slovak, his mother's Italian.
  4. "Boys of Summer". STANFORD magazine. September–October 1998. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  5. Simon, Mark (March 31, 2001). "Diamond-Studded Summer / Stanford grads who hit every major league ballpark tell all". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  6. "The Summer that Saved Baseball". Stanford Graduate School of Business. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  7. Leuty, Ron (March 30, 2017). "A's President Dave Kaval on Quakes, A's, and search for new stadium site". San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  8. Caple, Jim. "Golden Baseball League wackiness". ESPN. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  9. Souders, Travis (October 6, 2010). "Kaval"s resignation leaves questions for Outlaws, GBL". The Reporter. Vacaville, California. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  10. Almond, Elliott (December 27, 2016). "Dave Kaval a worthy savior for A's". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  11. "San Jose Earthquakes Hire New Team President". KPIX-TV. October 6, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  12. Lalas, Greg (October 20, 2012). "San Jose clinch Supporters' Shield, home-field advantage throughout playoffs". Major League Soccer. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  13. Hepler, Lauren (February 7, 2013). "San Jose Earthquakes set new stadium construction start date". Silicon Valley Business Journal. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  14. "New Stadium now set to open in second half of 2014 season". San Jose Earthquakes. July 29, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  15. "Earthquakes new stadium will now open at start of 2015 MLS season". San Jose Earthquakes. September 13, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  16. "Recap: Quakes 3, Galaxy 2". San Jose Earthquakes. February 28, 2015. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  17. Almond, Elliot (May 31, 2017). "Exclusive: Earthquakes hire EPL executive as new president". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  18. Rodriguez, Alicia (June 1, 2017). "San Jose Earthquakes hire Tom Fox as team president". Major League Soccer. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  19. Slusser, Susan (November 17, 2016). "New A's president Dave Kaval focused on stadium, community". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  20. Petersen, Gary (April 13, 2017). "A's new president changing team's culture one tarp at a time". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  21. Slusser, Susan (February 19, 2017). "A new Coliseum experience: food trucks, Shibe Park tavern". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  22. Hart, Torrey (July 31, 2018). "A's end season ticket program, announce 'A's Access' membership alternative for 2019". athleticsnation.com. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  23. Debolt, David (September 12, 2017). "A's preferred site for new ballpark is Peralta College land". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  24. "Laney College staff, students voice opposition to Oakland A's stadium plan". KGO-TV. November 22, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  25. Debolt, David (September 19, 2017). "A's stadium: Chinatown leaders, activists split over Peralta location". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  26. "Oakland A's ballpark plan faces opposition from college students, faculty, many residents". KTVU. November 21, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  27. Veklerov, Kimberly (December 6, 2017). "Laney College board halts ballpark plans, leaving Oakland A's shocked". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  28. Smith, Ashley A. (December 7, 2017). "Saying No to the Majors". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  29. Matier, Phillip; Ross, Andrew (November 27, 2018). "A's propose 'jewel box' ballpark for waterfront, Coliseum redevelopment". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  30. Anthony, Laura (April 17, 2019). "Maritime Industry opposes new Oakland Athletics's ballpark at Howard Terminal". KGO-TV. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  31. Matier, Phil (February 15, 2019). "A's ballpark proposal encounters choppy waters". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  32. Spedden, Zach (February 19, 2019). "Groups Opposing A's Howard Terminal Ballpark Plan". ballparkdigest.com. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  33. Ronan, Dan (May 25, 2021). "Trucking Groups Oppose Oakland Stadium Port Site Even as A's Mull Moving". ttnews.com. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  34. "RAIL COMPANIES COMMENT ON HOWARD TERMINAL". newballpark.org. May 7, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  35. Hickey, John (June 30, 2020). "Athletics' Push for Howard Terminal Ballpark Continues Despite Sierra Club Letter". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  36. Berman, Steve; Coffey, Alex (April 5, 2021). "The A's believe their Howard Terminal ballpark project is eco-conscious. Environmental groups are skeptical". The Athletic. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  37. Axisa, Mike (July 21, 2021). "A's stadium proposal moves forward with City Council vote, but team's future in Oakland remains uncertain". CBS Sports. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  38. Kelly, George (April 20, 2023). "On the move? Oakland Athletics announce Las Vegas land deal". The Mercury News. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  39. Elliot, Almond (December 27, 2016). "A's new president: Five things to know about Dave Kaval". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  40. Kato, Yoshi (September 3, 2018). "Menlo Park resident gaining popularity as A's president". Palo Alto Weekly. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
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