Fresno mayor and mayorelect react to MLB’s plan to demote Triple-A team

Fresno city officials issued a statement about the fate of the Fresno Grizzlies on Friday, two days after Major League Baseball gave the city an ultimatum.

MLB said in a letter Wednesday that the team must accept a demotion to Single-A baseball by Monday or prepare to go without affiliation to one of the 30 major league clubs.

Mayor Lee Brand and Mayor-elect Jerry Dyer issued a response to the letter from the Office of the Commissioner of MLB. They noted an “extreme disappointment” that the letter came during the Thanksgiving break.

“The Grizzlies have been an award-winning franchise both in management and marketing for over 20 years and the investment that the Grizzlies have made in this team and its facilities must not be dismissed,” the statement said. “The city of Fresno is decidedly united with the Grizzlies in this endeavor to maintain our Triple-A legacy of success.”

Representatives for MLB did not immediately return a request for comment on Friday.

In the wake of the Washington Nationals’ decision to end its alliance with the Grizzlies, no other major league teams have expressed interested in the Fresno franchise as a Triple-A affiliate, according to a letter from Daniel R. Halem, deputy commissioner and chief legal officer for MLB.

The Colorado Rockies are willing to add Fresno to its minor league system, but only in the California League that will switch from High Class-A to Low Class-A. The Cal League’s current eight-team alignment has teams in Visalia, Modesto, Stockton, San Jose and four Southern California cities.

Fresno and the Grizzlies have until Monday to accept Single-A affiliation, and to agree to “release any legal claims” against MLB or its clubs, the letter said.

Grizzlies President Derek Franks declined to comment on Friday.