A report in this week’s Sacramento Business Journal goes over the ongoing struggle to get the A’s on the radio in the Sacramento area. Most of the article isn’t revelatory, but it does point out that a Modesto station (probably KTRB) backed out of a deal with the A’s in January. What’s discouraging is that there still are no prospects on the horizon, making Sacramento A’s fans SOL unless they get XM. One interesting tidbit: 5% of A’s season ticket holders come from the Sacramento area.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, the on-again, off-again discussions about a downtown arena have heated up, especially since the city lost a chance to bid on the 2008 Democratic National Convention. The 49ers, fresh off a newly signed CBA and a renewed G3 loan program, are stepping up their stadium plans by soliciting architecture firms for their 72,000-seat venue that will eventually replace Candlestick/3Com/Monster Park. The 49ers’ stadium could have an indirect impact on the A’s because it’s likely that the new stadium will have at least twice the number of luxury suites that the ‘Stick currently has (64). That could in turn further saturate the Bay Area market, making the sale of luxury suites at an A’s ballpark a bit more difficult.