Month: April 2026

Sacramento A’s podcast Tony Harvey: Sox 4 run seventh costly in A’s 9-2 loss at Sutter Health

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The baseball is at Chicago White Sox runner Luisangel Acua (0) has the baseball at his back and A’s first baseman Nick Kurtz (left) won’t get it in time for the putout at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento

Sacramento A’s podcast Tony Harvey:

#1 The Chicago White Sox Munetaka Murakami’s first career grand slam launched the White Sox into the win column with a 9-2 win over the Sacramento Athletics on Friday night at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento.

#2 The Sox also got good pitching from Davis Martin who gave up three hits over seven innings pitch surrendering three hits and one earned run. No doubt Martin had his stuff working for him.

#3 Sacramento pitcher Aaron Civale struggled pitching 4.2 innings he got racked up by Sox hitting for 11 hits and five earned runs.

#4 A’s Nick Kurtz slugged a RBI single in the last of the fourth that sent A’s Shea Langeliers home and the A’s Andy Ibanez hit for an RBI scoring Max Muncy and that was all the damage the A’s could muster on Friday night.

#5 Match ups for Saturday at Sutter Health Park for the White Sox RHP Erick Fedde (0-3 ERA 3.38) for the A’s RHP Luis Severino (0-2 ERA 5.59) first pitch 1:05pm PDT.

Join Tony Harvey each week for the Sacramento A’s podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in. 

White Sox Power Past A’s 9-2 in Series Opener in Sacramento

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Aaron Civale #45 of the Athletics pitches against the Chicago White Sox in the third inning at Sutter Health Park on April 17, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Mandatory photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Athletics welcomed Munetaka Murakami and the Chicago White Sox to Sacramento on Friday night for the beginning of a three-game series.

The White Sox handled business behind a powerful offensive performance, defeating the Athletics 9-2 in front of a sold-out crowd of 12,027.

Aaron Civale started the game for the A’s and was immediately in trouble as he gave up a leadoff double, and the White Sox never looked back. Civale struggled locating his pitches, which led to hits and not walks on this particular occasion. Civale managed to go four and two-thirds innings while allowing five runs on 11 hits while walking one and striking out four. Civale needed 103 pitches to get through his laborious outing.

“I think there’s probably a lot of balls left in the middle of the plate tonight…he grinded…I thought he gave us everything he had tonight,” Mark Kotsay said after the game.

In the clubhouse, Aaron Civale was doing his best to move on from the draining outing in which he threw 103 pitches.

“I felt like we were doing a good job out there, competing,” Civale said after the game to reporters. “From what I can tell, it’s just kind of one of those days you gotta flush it and move forward.”

The A’s bullpen came in and looked to keep the game within striking distance, but they weren’t able to do that.

Elvis Alvarado came on in relief and tossed two innings of his own. Elvis gave up four runs on a mammoth grand slam to Munetaka Murakami that cleared the batter’s eye in center field. All in, Elvis tossed 45 pitches in his two innings of work while giving up three hits and walking three batters while striking out three.

The A’s finished the game with Justin Sterner, who was on the mound for the A’s late collapse on Thursday. Sterner tossed an impressive two and a third innings of one-hit, no-run baseball while striking out four batters and not allowing a walk. It was a nice bounce-back for the right-hander, who needed 46 pitches to get it done.

On the offensive side, the Athletics couldn’t get much going against the White Sox. Starter Davis Martin for Chicago was dealing early and took a no-hitter into the fourth inning. In total, the A’s managed two runs while collecting four hits and walking four times against the White Sox staff.

The A’s scored two runs, with one coming in the fourth inning and the other in the eighth inning.

In the fourth, Nick Kurtz had an RBI single into right field that scored Shea Langeliers from second base.

In the eighth, Andy Ibáñez collected an RBI when he grounded out to score Max Muncy from third base.

Other than that, the A’s were blanked by the White Sox staff on a brisk West Sacramento night, falling by the final score of 9-2.

With the loss, the A’s fell to 10-10 on the season and will take on the White Sox in Game 2 of the three-game series on Saturday afternoon at 12:05 p.m. PST. Luis Severino (0-2, 5.59 ERA) will take the mound for the A’s, while the White Sox will send Erick Fedde (0-3, 3.38 ERA) to the bump.

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in. 

Barracuda fall 5-2 to Condors, extend losing streak to 6

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San Jose Barracuda vs Bakersfield Condors on Friday April 17th at Dignity Health Arena (via sjbarracuda)

By Madison Montez

The San Jose Barracuda dropped their sixth straight game as the slump continues losing to the Bakersfield Condors 5-2 at Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield on Friday night.

Bakersfield opened up the scoring, 1:46 into the first period, Sam Poulin scoring his 20th goal of the season. They extended that lead when Isaac Howard scored his seventh goal of the season.

Sam Poulin extended Bakersfield’s lead to 3-0 scoring his second of the game, and 21st goal of the season. San Jose avoided the shutout when Brendan Hoffman scored his fifth goal of the season. Patrick Giles recorded the primary assist while Jarod Crespo recorded the secondary assist.

Cutting the lead to one, and making it 3-2, Filip Bystedt scored his 22 goal of the season. Jake Boltmann recording the primary assist and Quentin Musty recording the secondary assist. Scoring their second powerplay goal of the night, Bakersfield made it 4-2 when Roby Järventie scored his 22 of the night. To secure the win, Roby Järventie scored an empty netter to make it 5-2.

After the first period, Bakersfield outshot San Jose nine to eight. After the second period, San Jose outshot Bakersfield 12-11. Lastly, after the third period, Bakersfield outshot San Jose 11-10.

Special teams played an early role in Friday night’s game. San Jose went 0/5 on the powerplay. Bakersfield went 2/4 on the powerplay.

Friday night, Laurent Brossoit got the start for San Jose. Making 17 saves on 20 shots, Brossoit recorded Friday night’s loss. For Bakersfield, Matt Tomkins made 28 saves on 30 shots, and recorded Friday night’s win.

THREE STARS OF THE GAME:

  1. Sam Poulin
  2. Roby Jarventie
  3. Matt Tomkins

The Barracuda will be back in action Saturday at 7pm, where they will host the Bakersfield Condors for their last regular season game.

Giants Offensive Excellence Wins Game One Against Nationals 10-5; That’s two in a row for SF

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San Francisco Giants Heliot Ramos is thrilled after hitting a three run home run against the Cincinnati Reds in the top of the second inning at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati on Fri Apr 17, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The San Francisco Giants (8-12) won the first game in their series with the Washington Nationals (9-11) 10-5. They scored multiple runs early in the second inning after leading after two innings 6-0. The offense everyone has been waiting to see finally revealed itself and it was great. Every single player in the lineup had at least one hit and Matt Chapman had 3 hits.

Game recap: The first inning was uneventful for both teams, the Giants Luis Arraez singled but that was it for the opening inning. The Nationals went three and out.

San Francisco got something really big going, more like an explosion, in the second inning. They strung out some hits with Casey Schmitt and Jung Hoo Lee both singling and then a big hit off the bat of Heliot Ramos for a three-run home run to center taking a 3-0 lead.

Daniel Susac singled but was thrown out trying to steal second base. With only one out, Drew Gilbert walked followed by a Willy Adames single. The Giants went back to work putting more runners on base. Luis Arraez grounded out and with two outs a Chapman single drove Gilbert and Adames home for a 5-0 lead.

San Francisco was not finished. Rafael Devers doubled and Chapman scored pushing the lead to 6-0 in favor of the Giants. A rough inning for the Nationals finally came to an end when Schmitt flied out but San Francisco had a huge inning already with six hits in the game. Starting pitcher for Washington Zack Littell gave up eight hits and six runs in the second inning.

Meanwhile Logan Webb worked his way through the second inning giving up a CJ Abrams single and then dismissed the next three at bats and this game went into the third inning. Webb was systematically working his way through the Washington lineup giving up very little.

San Francisco had scored a lot and they had scored early a huge edge going forward in the game but there was still a lot of baseball to be played. That aside what a great way to start a ball game for the Giants.

Littell had a vastly improved in the third inning, his best of the game with a three and out. The Nationals got something going in the bottom of the third, Jose Tena and Keibert Ruiz had back to back singles.

Top of the batting order for Washington James Wood came to the plate with no outs. Webb was in a bit of a jam but he did strike Wood out. The next at bat for the Nationals was a fielders choice ground out but Jose Tena scored for the first National run of the game.

With two outs there were two runners on base for Washington but Webb got the third out without giving up a lot. It had been a long inning for Webb; he already had a 55 pitch count going into the top of the fourth inning. San Francisco had given up the one run still leading 6-1.

The Giants got a great hit in the fourth inning from the bottom of the batting order. Drew Gilbert hit a solo home run, his first of the year, to right center, the second of the game for San Francisco.

Adames followed that home run up with a double. With Adames on third Chapman singled driving in another run for an 8-1 score.11 hits through four innings plus every player on the roster with at least a hit was probably the best game the team has played so far this season. Littell’s pitch count was really getting up there as well with 77 pitches though four innings.

The Nationals cut the Giants lead in the bottom of the fourth to 8-3 when Daviid Liles hit a 2-run home run with Joey Weimer on base. 79 pitches later Webb got out of the inning.

Littell was relieved in the fifth inning by Paxton Schultz. Littell allowed 11 hits, 8 runs, 1 walk, 2 home runs and 4 strikeouts.

The hits quieted down in the second half of the game for the Giants. San Francisco had one hit in the fifth inning, a Susac double but that would close out the inning. The Nationals went three and out in the inning and this game was moving along. It only took Webb five pitches to get out of the inning.

It was a three and out in the sixth inning for San Francisco. The Nationals were able to score in the bottom of the sixth. A Lile walk resulted in a fourth run for Washington when Tena singled him home for an 8-4 San Francisco lead.

The Giants extended their lead with a third home run in the top of the seventh inning 9-4. Schmitt hit a solo long ball 399 feet to left center. The Nationals would answer in the bottom of the inning when Wood blasted a Matt Gage pitch out of the park. Gage had relieved Webb after six innings. Webb finished with 7 hits, 4 runs 2 walks and 6 strikeouts. He allowed one home run.

Washington’s PJ Poulin relieved Schultz going into the eighth inning . Schultz had pitched for three innings for the Nationals. Schultz finished with 2 hits, 1 run, (a home run) and 1 strikeout. The Giants Caleb Kilian would take over for Gage in the eighth inning only giving up a walk and it was on to the ninth inning.

Richard Lovelady relieved Poulin in the ninth inning. The Giants threatened to bust this game wide open to finish. Lovelady gave up a single to Arraez, and a single to Chapman with no outs.

Lovelady went on to strike out Devers and Schmitt popped out for two outs. Lee walked loading the bases followed by a Ramos walk and Arraez scored. Getting that third out was a horrible struggle for Lovelady.

When all the dust had settled and the Nationals got that third out, the Giants were leading 10-5. It was only the one run scored but could have been a whole lot worse for Washington. Blade Tidwell closed out the game for the Giants winning game one 10-5.

Game notes: After breaking a four game losing streak Thursday beating the Reds 3-0, the Giants began a three-game weekend series with the Nationals at blustery Nationals Park Friday night. At the start of the game the winds were fairly calm and so wind was not be a factor in the game Friday night.

The Giants continued their winning streak with a convincing 10-5 win Friday night. Adames lead-off and Heliot Ramos batted seventh, Daniel Susac eighth and Drew Gilbert ninth. After Adames, Arraez, Chapman, Devers, Schmitt and Lee will fill in the roster.

The Giants had won the series opener. San Francisco finished the game with 15 hits and had won their second game in a row.

For Saturday’s game Adrian Houser will take the mound for the Giants in game two. Houser has an 0-2 win/loss record and a 5.06 ERA. Cade Cavalli will get the nod for the Nationals with a 0-1 win/loss record and a 4.60 ERA. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 PM PDT.

San Jose Sharks/NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Len Shapiro: It’s Macklin again in laying out offense as Sharks close out season against Jets 6-1

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San Jose Sharks Macklin Celebrini broke the Sharks all time points record with 115 passing Shark great Joe Thornton against the Winnipeg Jets at the Canadian Life Centre in Winnipeg on Thu Apr 16, 2026 (San Jose Sharks X photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Len Shapiro:

#1 San Jose Sharks Macklin Celebrini scored a goal and got a pair of assists and broke former Shark Joe Thornton’s points record with 115 as the Sharks demolish the Winnipeg Jets in the last regular season game 6-1.

#2 For the season Celbrini scored 45 goals, had 70 assists in 82 game and became the team’s all time points leader passing Thornton doing it in just in 82 games. Celbrini was also impressive in his rookie year with 63 point and 25 goals in 70 games.

#3 NHL Stanley Cup Playoff matchup upcoming.

Len Shapiro does the NHL podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Utah Mammoth game wrap: Utah Wraps Regular Season On Blue Note, Losing 5-3 To St Louis

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Utah Mammoth John Marino takes in the warm up before their game against the St Louis Blues Thu Apr 3, at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City (Utah Mammoth X photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Utah Mammoth (43-32-6) suited up early Thursday afternoon for their nationally televised regular season finale against the St. Louis Blues (36-33-12). Regardless of the outcome, head coach André Tourigny entered the contest riding a streak of five consecutive seasons of continuous improvement beginning with a 25-50-7 record in his Arizona Coyotes debut in 2021-22. The Mammoth dropped a 5-3 decision to the Blues.on Thursday.

St. Louis took an early lead in the first period when Pavel Buchnevich picked up a loose puck to the side of the Utah net and knocked it in for his 20th of the season at 3:45 assisted by Jordan Kyrou and Pius Suter. With just over three minutes remaining in the frame, Michael Carcone evened things up with a snap shot into the top shelf corner over the right shoulder of netminder Joel Hofer for his 16th of the season, assisted by JJ Peterka and John Marino.

Carcone is enjoying a bounce back season in Utah after having initially anticipated to be playing elsewhere following a disappointing seven-goal campaign last year. He won’t be looking for a new home this coming offseason, having signed a two-year, $3.5 million contract extension last month. The two squads headed to the locker room knotted up at one apiece, with Hofer having stopped 8 of 9 shots and Karel Vejmelka turning away 10 of 11.

Lawson Crouse gave Utah their first lead of the game at the drop of the puck in the second period, banging in a rebound off a shot by MacKenzie Weegar 45 seconds into the frame. Clayton Keller picked up the second assist on Crouse’s 24th goal of the season. The goal matched Crouse’s previous career high of 24 from the 2022-23 season in Arizona, and Keller’s assist extends his franchise assist and point streak record to 10 games. Keller joins Quinn Hughes (MIN) and Artemi Panarin (NYR) as the only players in the NHL to register 10-game assist streaks this season.

At 8:14, Robert Thomas tied it up again with his 23rd goal of the season, one-timing a nifty backwards pass from Dylan Holloway who was battling two defenders at the side of the net. Three minutes later Thomas struck again, putting the Blues up 3-2 with his 24th goal, assisted by Cam Fowler and Holloway. With 68 seconds remaining in the frame, Kailer Yamamoto came through with his 13th of the season to even the score once again, assisted by Weegar and Keller.

There may have been a buzzer to mark the end of the period, but it might as well have been a trip gong of a boxing match as fists began to fly between the players on the ice. When the scrum concluded, Logan Cooley and Philip Broberg were each assessed two-minute roughing penalties to carry over into the third period. Hofer stopped 9 of 11 Mammoth shots in the period, while Vejmelka turned away 5 of 7.

With the score still tied 3-3 and less than three minutes remaining in the third, the possibility of an overtime match and even the first shootout of the season for the Mammoth seemed in play, but when Utah defenseman Nate Schmidt attempted to clear the puck from behind the net, St. Louis defenseman Logan Mailloux snagged it off the dasher boards and wristed a backhand shot past Vítek Vaněček who had entered the game in the third to spell Vejmelka.

Mailloux’s unassisted goal was his fifth of the season, giving the Blues a 4-3 lead. With Vaněček pulled for an extra attacker, Robert Thomas completed his hat trick into an empty net with 38 seconds remaining to put the game away 5-3. Utah completes the regular season with new franchise records in wins (43), points (92), and points percentage (.561).

Following the game, the Mammoth remained on the ice for the team’s regular season awards as follows: All-In Award: Lawson Crouse Community Obsessed Award: Michael Carcone Three-Stars Award: Dylan Guenther Leading Scorer: Clayton Keller (26g, 62a, 88pts) Team MVP: Clayton Keller

Mammoth Governor Ryan Smith concluded the award presentations telling the home fans, “This is your team. Tusks up! Let’s Go!”

In the locker room, Crouse commented on receiving the “All In” team award, “I think I just try and do my best each and every night out there. Obviously, a lot of guys on our team do so too. I think if you look around the room, there’s a lot of guys that come out for that award, and I am obviously very grateful to get that recognition.” On bringing the playoffs to Utah for the first time and what he’s expecting from the home crowd, Crouse added, “Feeling that energy and that atmosphere out there each and every night, I find it hard to believe that there is another level. Considering how loud they have been, they’ve continued to blow us away. So I’m sure they have something in the bag for us for the playoffs.”

On winning the MVP award, captain Clayton Keller said, “It means a lot, for sure. There’s lots of other guys in this room that could have received it. It’s very special, and it means a lot for sure.” As the Mammoth prepare to travel to Las Vegas for Game 83, Keller continued, “It’s super exciting. We’re so excited to be in the playoffs. This is where we wanted to go, and now the real fun starts. Regular season’s over. It doesn’t matter at all, really. It’s focus on Vegas.” Asked what makes Utah dangerous in the first round of the playoffs, Keller said, “I think we’re a very confident team right now. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun, lots of excitement, and great for our group to get into the playoffs and feel that. So I think we’re, like I said, super confident and can’t wait.”

Forward Michael Carcone, asked about receiving the Community Obsessed Award, said, “It’s exciting. Like I said from day one, this community has been special and done so much for my family and myself, so obviously getting recognized for this award is special to me.” With regard to the playoffs, Carcone added, “We did our job getting there, and now it’s on to the next milestone here – getting some wins, getting some experience, and doing what we came here to do.” When the Mammoth return to Delta Center, Carcone is expecting the volume to increase even further. “I mean, you’ve seen it the last few games, right? It’s been pretty electric in here. I think the fans are excited, just as excited as us, so it’s going to be special.”

Utah Mammoth Head Coach André Tourigny has frequently spoken of his team’s resilience in post-game interviews, and Thursday was no different. “The resilience of the guys, the way they fought during the season, through certain moments of adversity, showed a lot of growth in our ability to have urgency when it was important. We stayed away from long periods of adversity. We were capable of having good consistency and strung a few winning streaks together that pushed us over the edge. Happy about the maturity our team had and how much they gel. Even if we have always been the team who is really tight to each other, you can’t take that for granted. Same thing with your family, my family, and all of our families. You don’t take relationships for granted. So, as much as we were tight, we’re even tighter now. So proud of the guys for that. I think they earned everything. They earned the right to play game 83. We talked about it all season long. Proud of the guys for that and excited to get going.” When asked if “brotherhood” is a superpower of the team, Tourigny said, “Yep, it is. I think there’s the excitement for wanting each other, the love they have for each other, and how much they care. I think that goes a long way. We said that we had so many examples this year when we were in adversity. Some guy had the opportunity to sign a long-term deal, and so on and so forth. I think all of that showed how much our team likes each other.”

The first ever playoff hunt for the Mammoth begins Sunday in Las Vegas against the Golden Knights.

André Tourigny’s career coaching record, seasons 1-3 in Arizona and 4-5 in Utah: 2021-22: 25-50-7 (57pts) 2022-23: 28-40-14 (70pts) 2023-24: 36-41-5 (77pts) 2024-25: 38-31-13 (89pts) 2025-26: 43-33-6 (94pts)

Sharks End Season With 6-1 Win, Celebrini Breaks Thornton Record

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San Jose Sharks Dimitry Orlov (9) congratulates goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (33) after defeating the Winnipeg Jets at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg on Thu Apr 16, 2026 (San Jose Sharks X photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks ended the 2025-26 season with a 6-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday. Sharks goals came from Macklin Celebrini, William Eklund, Will Smith, Igor Chernyshov, Collin Graf and Michael Misa. Alex Nedeljkovic made 25 saves for the win. Cole Koepke scored for the Jets and Eric Comrie made 27 saves in the loss.

Celebrini earned three points in the game, giving him 115 points for the season. That was enough to surpass the Sharks all-time single season record. Joe Thornton held the previous record with 114 points in the 2006-07 season. Celebrini also tied Thornton’s record for three-point games in a season with 18. Eklund and John Klingberg also had three-point nights and Will Smith had two points in the game.

The Jets scored first after a puck slipped by Mario Ferraro and out of the zone. Koepke had the jump on everyone and skated into the zone unimpeded for a snap shot into the top corner. That was at 3:28.

Igor Chernyshov tied the game with a power play goal at 6:26. Chernyshov got his stick on the rebound from Eklund’s shot, then he got his own rebound and put the puck behind the goaltender. Assists went to Eklund and Celebrini.

Will Smith gave the Sharks the lead at 16:54. Celebrini made a pass across the ice and Smith snapped it home from just inside the faceoff circle. Assists went to Celebrini and Klingberg.

The Jets outshot the Sharks 12-7 in the first period. Each took had a single penalty.

Collin Graf made it 3-1 at 5:51 of the second period. He knocked the puck free in the d-zone and carried it all the way to the Jets net to score.

The next goal did not come until late in the period, at 18:01. Michael Misa skated end-to end with the puck, entering the Jets zone two-on-one with Kiefer Sherwood. Misa took the shot from the face-off circle, then caught his own reboudn as he skated by the net and tapped it in. Assists went to Eklund and Klingberg.

William Eklund’s goal came even later, at 19:55. Eklund was one of several Sharks around the net, taking shots. Eklund found the puck as it trickled clear of the goaltender and, while dropping to his knees, Eklund pushed the puck over the line. Assists went to Mario Ferraro and Kiefer Sherwood.

The Sharks outshot the Jets 16-7 in the middle frame. The only penalty called went against the Sharks for too many men on the ice.

Macklin Celebrini scored the final goal of the game at 1:14 of the third. After passing the puck to his teammates several times, Celebrini finally took the shot from the slot to set a new single-season scoring record for the Sharks. Assists went to Klingberg and Smith.

Celebrini finished the season in fourth place for points and tied for fourth place in goals. The Sharks finished the season in 24th place in the league.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: A’s With this Offense, they deserve better Pitching

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Former San Diego Padres top pick Leo De Vries has been promoted by the Sacramento A’s and is a promising future hopeful for the A’s (Sports Illustrated photo)

A’s: With this Offense, they deserve better Pitching –

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

I get it, the Sacramento A’s plan is to keep improving, so by the time they open their new digs in Las Vegas, they can be real contenders. My broadcast partner, Manolo Hernández-Douen, and I talked about that during the 2024 season, when the team had a legendary Spanish-language radio station in the Bay Area, and last season in Oakland. You might say, “Oh, that is disrespectful to Sacramento”, but there is no mystery theater here.

The A’s are leasing Sacramento for a couple of years (not counting 2027), with a possible owners’ lockout looming. They are playing well so far in their young 2026 season, with their manager, Mark Kotsay, who has continued to do a good job since he was hired in December 2021.

The team improved their pitching during the off-season and acquired Aaron Civale, and relievers Scott Barlow and Mark Leiter Jr. to provide experience. Overall, this 2026 A’s club is a scrappy team with very young and exciting hitters like Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz. They are on the up and up, and could surprise a lot of people in baseball. I just wish they had a more settled, experienced pitching rotation and overall pitching to go along with that juicy lineup.

Yes, I like the A’s lineup; however, their rotation with these five starters, Severino, Springs, Civale, López, and Morales, is ranked #26 among the 30 MLB teams by Sports Illustrated. Ironically, the last “big pitcher: the A’s lost was not a starter, but a reliever, Mason Miller, the Rolls-Royce of closers, who is now with the Padres, however this was a trade that could bring very good dividends to the young Athletics in the future, especially young shortstop Leo De Vries among with three other players, all pitchers who came to the A’s in the trade. Leodalis “Leo” De Vries is a 20-year-old Dominican shortstop who was ranked No.4 prospect in baseball as recently as this month of April 2026.

A good friend of mine and ex-Oakland A’s fan asked me recently, “Are they going to trade a player for a good starting pitcher? I have no idea. Starters are not cheap; for example, Framber Valdéz signed a 3-year, $115 million contract with Detroit this year.

This version of the A’s is exciting and promising; they have a “maybe” chance of making the postseason. However, in my opinion, their pitching is still not at the level to be considered a real contender, because it is very simple; it all starts with pitching. If you are one of their fans, are you happy so far with the A’s?

Of course. Here is one reason: in April, the Athletics completed their first-ever series sweep of the New York Mets.

I will end with a quote from one of my favorite major league managers of all time, who happens to be my original favorite team as a kid, the Baltimore Orioles. It says a lot about pitching. . The reason you win or lose is darn near always the same – pitching.” — Earl Weaver

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame

LaTerraza Mexican Restaurant 1027 2nd Street in Old Sacramento give them a call at 916-440-0874

From the second you step in the front door, the sounds of Latin America will gently seduce your ears and continue as you relax outdoors with your favorite cocktail enjoying the view. The wonderful flavors and aromas of our cuisine will not disappoint.

We use only the finest, freshest, local ingredients in every dish and every dish is prepared to order. Enjoy live mariachi music weekly and on special occasions, catch balet folklorico dance performances among other live entertainment. Come visit us and have a great time! Enjoy fast, friendly service, fantastic food & cocktails, music and allow us to share our beautiful Mexican heritage with you.

LaTerraza Mexican Restaurant at 1027 2nd Street in Old Sacramento give them a call at 916-440-0874.

Sacramento A’s podcast Jeremiah Salmonson: A’s can’t hold lead as Rangers rally for four runs to win it in the ninth 9-6

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Texas Rangers Joc Pederson (3) slides in at home plate scoring a ninth inning run against the Sacramento A’s at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento on Thu Apr 16, 2026 (AP News photo)

Sacramento A’s podcast Jeremiah Salmonson:

#1 Texas Rangers Joc Pederson hit a single in the top of the ninth inning that contributed to four runs scoring as Texas came up with a 9-6 win that gave a 2-2 series split between the Rangers and Sacramento A’s.

#2 The A’s Nick Kurtz hit a blooper that turned into a three run double outfielder Wyatt Lanford couldn’t get to in left field thart help give the A’s a one run two out 6-5 lead in the bottom of the eighth.

#3 The Rangers Jake Burger and Josh Jung got a base hit in the ninth against A’s reliever Justin Sterner. Kyle Higashioka was safe when Sterner picked up a bunt that went over the head of Darrell Hernaiz playing third base for an error that allowed Burger to score tying up the ball game.

#4 The A’s Jacob Wilson got a two run single off Rangers releiver Jack Leiter in the bottom of the fifth. Carlos Cortes next up hit and RBI base hit and it gave the A’s a 3-2 lead that was later short lived.

#5 Next up for the A’s the Chicago White Sox with starter right hand pitcher Davis Martin (2-1 ERA 2.50) for the A’s right hander Aaron Civale (2-0 ERA 1.72) with a first pitch at 6:40pm PDT.

Join Jeremiah Salmonson who does the Sacramento A’s podcast each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in. 

Windy Conditions, A’s Drop Series Finale 9-6 as 9th Inning Unravels

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Justin Sterner #60 of the Athletics pitches against the Texas Rangers in the ninth inning at Sutter Health Park on April 16, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO — The Athletics and Rangers met to conclude a four-game series at Sutter Health Park on Thursday afternoon at 12:05 p.m. PST.

The Rangers managed to salvage a series split, defeating the Athletics 9-6 in windy conditions.

It was a turbulent afternoon in Sacramento, and that’s exactly how Jacob Lopez’s day went as he got the start for the A’s.

Lopez, who has been solid so far this season for the A’s, continued to battle walks in his start on Thursday. Lopez entered the game having walked 13 batters in his first three games of the season; he added four more to his total against the Rangers, as he has now walked 17 batters in four starts this year. Even with the walks, Lopez managed to go five innings of two-run, three-hit baseball while striking out five hitters on the day. It was a solid start for Lopez as he continues to battle command issues early this season.

Luis Medina came on in relief for Lopez, pitched the sixth inning, and recorded one out in the seventh. Medina finished going one and a third innings, giving up two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out one.

Scott Barlow was next up for the A’s as he pitched two-thirds of an inning to wrap up the seventh. Barlow gave up a run on one hit, a home run, and walked two batters in his appearance.

Jack Perkins pitched the eighth inning for the A’s and was the sharpest pitcher for them all game. Perkins’ only blemish was a hit batter as he threw a scoreless inning, allowing no walks, hits, or runs.

In the ninth inning, with the A’s having just taken the lead in the bottom of the eighth, Mark Kotsay elected to go with Justin Sterner for the ninth inning. Sterner had a disastrous inning as he allowed four runs on four hits while walking one and striking out one in his inning of relief.

On the offensive side of the ball, the A’s gave themselves a lot of chances all game to put up crooked numbers. The Athletics’ offense tallied 13 hits and four walks but was only able to score six runs in the game.

The scoring came in the third and eighth innings for the A’s as they plated three runs in each of those innings.

In the third inning, the A’s scored for the first time on a two-RBI single from Jacob Wilson that tied the game at the time. Later in that same inning, Carlos Cortes singled home Wilson to give the A’s the lead before getting thrown out in no-man’s-land between first and second base.

The A’s wouldn’t score again until the bottom of the eighth inning, down 5-3 and looking for a spark to get the offense going. The A’s loaded the bases with two outs, and it brought Nick Kurtz to the plate. Kurtz, who has struggled early on this season, hit a wind-aided, bases-clearing, three-RBI double to give the A’s a 6-5 lead heading into the ninth inning. The ball was popped up by Kurtz to what ended up being shallow left field, but the left fielder never had a shot as the wind was blowing it in all types of directions.

Sterner failed to hold the lead, as detailed earlier, and the A’s fell to the Rangers 9-6.

With the loss, the Athletics fell to 10-9 on the season. 

The A’s will stay home to take on Munetaka Murakami and the Chicago White Sox in the first of a three-game series on Friday at 6 p.m. PST. Aaron Civale (2-0, 1.72 ERA) is set to start the game for the A’s as the White Sox send Davis Martin (2-1, 2.50 ERA) to the hill.

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.