Sam Arkwright Diaries
July 28th, 2022
Henderson sits smack dab between Sin City and the Hoover Dam. Drive 20 minutes west from Henderson on I-215, and you're on the south end of the Las Vegas Strip. Drive 20 minutes east on Highway 93, and you're in Boulder City. I don't know Henderson particularly well. I tend to take the long way around along Lake Mead and avoid Henderson altogether. It adds an extra 15 minutes to my drive from Boulder City to Las Vegas, but I don't mind. The roads are a little more winding, and a little less crowded. That's my kind of driving. Let's just say the drive from my house to Vegas is significantly quicker than what GPS would suggest.
But I couldn't take the long way today. I made it to Henderson from Boulder City in my Luna Spark in less than 15 minutes. When I rolled up to the site, it took me a while*to spot my target. I kept glancing down at a pic of John Fisher on my phone, and then back up as I looked for the reclusive A's owner. I finally found him, hidden in plain sight. He was standing right next to Paul Manfred, wearing jeans and a polo, and a camouflage cap. I made eye contact with the Commish, who motioned for me to come over. I casually slipped my right hand into my front pocket and pressed record on my dictation device.
Quote:
[Begin Transcription, 9:52 am Pacific, 7/28/22]
Manfred: John, there's someone I'd like you to meet.
Fisher: (inaudible)
Manfred: This is Sam Arkwright. He's with Sol in Boulder City. They make the Arkade Video console.
Fisher: Boulder City... I'm hearing great things about all the things you're doing out there. Sam, was it?
Arkwright: Yes. Nice to meet you.
(silence)
Arkwright: Big win for your team yesterday. Series sweep against the Astros. Congratulations.
(silence)
Arkwright: How about that Benintendi trade to the Yankees? The rich get richer...
(silence)
Manfred: John... Sam is a vital partner with Major League Baseball. His company is making our next video game, exclusive to their console...
Fisher: That's great. I'll be sure to call you when I want to get a video game for my nephew. Thanks for stopping by, Stan.
[Pause Transcription]
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Stan?
STAN?? My blood started to boil. I was seething. But Manfred gave me a look, as if to say, "Keep cool."
That 60-second "conversation" was all I was going to get out of John Fisher. And that's more than most. Look him up online. He is a ghost. Go to the A's website. You won't find a single picture of him. Not even a bio. The most you'll read about him is an online article appropriately titled,
"Who is John Fisher? Billionaire A's owner won't talk, so we spoke to over 20 people in his orbit."
I was ready to beat a hasty retreat back to Boulder City, but my path back to my car was cut off by Dave Kaval, the A's Team President.
Quote:
[Resume Transcription, 9:54 am Pacific, 7/28/22]
Kaval: Sam Arkwright!
Arkwright: Do I know you?
Kaval: No. We haven't met. Dave Kaval, Oakland A's.
Arkwright: Dave, nice to meet you. I'm afraid I must be going...
Kaval: I'll walk with you. So, what brings you to Henderson? You live in Boulder City, right? I've heard of your place... Zion. That's what it's called, right? I'm a huge fan.
Arkwright: You're a fan of my video games?
Kaval: No, no... I mean... your video games are great. Nothing against gaming. My daughters have an Arkade. I'm just not a gamer.
Arkwright: Okay...
Kaval: I just love your league.
Arkwright: You love my what?
Kaval: The Red Rock League! I love it! It's a revelation. Your ownership and franchise structure is top-notch. Your marketing and promotions are brilliant! You've created a model for other leagues... even the Major Leagues! (pause) Sorry, I'm sort of geeking out here...
(pause)
Kaval: I don't know if you're aware, but I actually ran an Independent League myself.
Arkwright: No... I didn't know that.
Kaval: Yeah! It was kind of a class project. Me and a classmate started it up after college. The Golden Baseball League.
Arkwright: The GBL? That was you?
Kaval: Yeah, yeah! Have you heard of it?
Arkwright: Absolutely. I went to a couple games in San Diego back in the day.
Kaval: The Surf Dawgs!
Arkwright: Yep. Came over to watch Rickey Henderson play. And then Canseco after that.
Kaval: Yeah... that second one didn't work out so well.
Arkwright: 0-for-4 with 4 strikeouts if I remember correctly.
Kaval: Yeah, Jose lasted just that one game. He said he wanted to be closer to his home, so we had to work out a trade between the Surf Dawgs and the Armada to get him to Long Beach. Jose was... a handful.
Arkwright: How was Rickey?
Kaval: Henderson? Much easier to work with. Didn't big-time anyone. Treated every game like it was The Show.
(pause)
Kaval: You ever think about bringing any big leaguers into the Red Rock League? I hear Rickey's still looking to play...
Arkwright: (laughs) I'll bet he is. We thought about it. Most of the other investors don't care one way or another. They're not in it for the money.
Kaval: But business is good...
Arkwright: We do alright.
Kaval: You've had an outstanding track record with your markets and ownership. Not one team has folded, right? That's got to be some sort of Independent baseball record.
Arkwright: Like I said, the other owners aren't really worried about losing money. That helps weather the storm when things aren't going so great. I think fans just want to know their team is going to stick around. They get attached to the players. They have a pretty good sense if a team is truly invested in the community, or if they're just going to get stepped on and taken advantage of.
(silence)
Kaval: OK, well, I don't want to take up any more of your time. I know you've got that new Arkade coming out. I'm sure you're super busy. Here's my card. Call me anytime. Again, my name's Dave Kaval. Nice to meet you, Mr. Arkwright.
Arkwright: Nice to meet you, too, Dave. And call me Sam.
Kaval: You got it. By the way... that's one heck of a car. Gotta get me one of those.
[End Transcription]
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With all due respect, Dave Kaval is not driving one of these anytime soon. I put my Luna on autopilot and started researching Kaval on the way back home. I wanted to know everything there is to know about this guy. If I play my cards right, he could be my Ace in the hole.
Pictured: A's Sweep Astros; Andrew Benintendi - New York Yankees