Newly renovated Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento shines in the late March Sun as the Giants took on the River Cats (Photo: Jeremiah Salmonson/SRS)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO — Baseball in Sacramento is nothing new. Yet, having a team at the sports pinnacle of competition call the city home is uncharted territory.

The Sacramento River Cats have been playing in the West Sacramento ballpark since the year 2000. Sutter Health Park, formerly known as Raley Field, sits across the Sacramento River from downtown and the capitol building of the state of California. On hot summer nights, the delta breeze rolls in to cool the ballpark down, making it one of the best minor league baseball experiences in the country.

Yet, it was nowhere near Major League Baseball standards.

With the A’s departure from Oakland this past fall after decades of uncertainty surrounding a stadium, the Athletics Baseball Club finds itself in the cozy confines of Sutter Health Park for the 2025 season and beyond. The current plan is for the A’s to be in Sacramento through 2028, but who knows how that timeline will hold up. Nevertheless, the ballpark needed significant upgrades for the A’s to call it their home, albeit temporarily.

Who was responsible for improving the stadium?

Well…

The River Cats and the stadium are now owned by the chairman and owner of the Sacramento Kings, Vivek Ranadive. Vivek purchased the club and the stadium in an August 2022 deal that some saw as a first step in bringing MLB to Sacramento. “I’ve been in touch with the commissioner, I’ve gotten to know him, Rob Manfred, and they will be creating a new team,” Vivek said in Spring 2024. “They want it to be on the West coast, they would love it to be in California, and I think this is a great showcase for us. We can prove that there’s a market here and we can make the team successful. I think we are in full position to get the new franchise… We are investing in making this an MLB-level stadium, and our hope is that it leads to a permanent MLB team.” Clearly, for Vivek, this is about more than a temporary stay for the Athletics.

With Vivek’s vision for the city in mind, the team got busy on improvements to the stadium this past offseason. On Sunday, I had the opportunity to attend the first baseball game at the new and improved venue, a matinee affair.

The stadium and playing surface underwent significant improvements that include a new 75’ x 32’ scoreboard in right-center field, a new network along with improved audio systems, a renovated visiting clubhouse, a new multi-level home clubhouse that includes a weight room and hitting tunnels, a new grass and dirt playing surface specially designed to handle the heat and heavy use this summer, and an additional rooftop seating area on top of the home clubhouse.

The improvements are impressive, and they surely elevate the grounds to MLB standards. Kings president of business operations John Rinehart, who oversaw the renovations, and owner Vivek Ranadive can be proud of the new-look ballpark.

Giants starter Landen Roupp discussed what he thought about the upgrades after his five innings of one-run ball on Sunday: “It’s beautiful, a lot better than it was. It felt good to play here again and see the upgrades. It was really nice.”

Giants scheduled opening-day starter and Rocklin (a 20-minute drive from Sacramento) native Logan Webb also had good things to say when asked about his initial impressions of the stadium: “I noticed the scoreboard, and the batter’s eye. The grass is nice… it looks good!”

The Athletics will officially christen the new digs in the first MLB regular-season game on March 31st at 7:05 P.M. PST. The A’s will take on the visiting Chicago Cubs in the much-anticipated three-game series at Sutter Health Park.

So, while baseball in Sacramento is not new, MLB baseball in the capital city certainly is. It’s an exciting time for local baseball fans, as a year of anticipation finally becomes reality. The stage is set for the city to show what it can offer MLB, and don’t be fooled—the league and commissioner Rob Manfred will be watching closely.

Jeremiah Salmonson is a Sacramento A’s beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com