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A blast from the past:Telemundo ch 48 once televised A’s games in Spanish

Published on October 15, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

[category Oakland Athletics]

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

OAKLAND–As we approach the 24th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake, this Thursday the 17th, which stopped the World Series for eleven days, we must remember what was going on in 1989 and during those years.

Just after the Oakland Athletics defeated the San Francisco Giants in that 1989 World Series, with two victories prior to the earthquake and two victories after the earthquake, KSTS CH 48 Telemundo would begin a schedule of weekend games live in Spanish of the four time World Champion Oakland A’s.

Then, General Manager, Joe Cruz, built a brand new set, colors Green and Gold, and authorized an expense of a few thousand dollars to build such a nice set. Yours truly was the Sports Director and Anchor those early years at Telemundo. The play by play of the games then were done from those studios, live, with a green screen in the background calling A’s games.

In this I Phone-Twitter-I Pad-Smart Phone and whatever else world we are living today, it is good to remember the many things that were done on radio and television. Like an old friend in the business tells me: “everything already has been done, at least once, although some people think they are re-discovering the world”.

Just one of my many memories in the business, which I thought was appropriate to remember during this week, when we celebrate 24 years since the earthquake that stopped the World Series for eleven days.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk

Michelle Richardson on the NCAA

Published on October 13, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by Michelle Richardson

Texas 36 Oklahoma 20: These kids from Texas are literally playing for Texas head coach Mack Brown’s job and I still don’t see him being there after this year but right now that’s what their playing for, these kids are playing for Brown. There’s grumblings within the university of Longhorn nation that he is overstaying his welcome and he’s one among the senior college coaches in the nation.

He’s been with U.T. about 16 years so there’s rumblings within from alumni like Earl Campbell that maybe it’s time to have a new leader at the helm. The Red River rivalry is alive and well and the University of Texas took on the Gold Hat. They proved to be the better team Saturday and both teams had interceptions Oklahoma had two interceptions.

In those total yards the efficiency that Texas was just way more efficient with first and third downs the Longhorns converted 13-23 downs when Oklahoma converted only two of 13. You got to convert third downs into first downs. It’s kind of important to keep the ball a little bit. On passing yards there were 109 yards for Texas, rushing yards 255 yards, so Texas was doing it on the ground and in the air.

Missouri 41 Georgia 26: Missouri played like a team possessed and they really didn’t believe the hype from U.G. and they were not thrown by playing them and they were not intimidated and they went in there and they smacked Georgia around. They just smacked those guys around for Georgia they had two fumbles, two interceptions.

That is so unlike Georgia and you have the Georgia quarterback and he’s playing without a lot of weapons and half of his players are injured, running back Todd Gurley is injured and head coach Mark Richt is playing with a lack of weapons. When you start losing key players in your offense it does take control and on Saturday it showed.

It’s not because of all these Georgia players injured is the reason why Missouri won, Missouri went in there and played, Missouri went in there and just controlled that game from the Bulldogs. Missouri played really well on both sides of the ball. Total first downs yards went to Missouri quarterback James Franklin for passing yards at 170 yards and had 12 rushing yards and for Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray he threw for 25-45 for 290 yards, and three touchdowns but lost the game.

Utah 27 Stanford 21: People think just because Utah came out from the Mountain West conference they were a less team. Utah has been showing people that Utah is for real and Utah has had a lot of players who chose not to play in the Pac 12 conference that were recruited by a Pac 12 team. You have a lot of players who played with or on the side a lot of the talent that’s in the Pac 12.

Utah is in it to win it, and as far as expansion it happened to the two teams that were absorbed into the Pac 12 Colorado and Utah. Utah was definitely in the top ten and that’s what they really wanted. The Utes went in there and they were at home and they beat a undefeated Cardinal team. The Utes had 21 first downs in the game, they converted third downs, although they had only one interception Stanford had two but it was a pretty even game.

It was a game of who wanted it more and the Utes wanted it more and the good thing it wasn’t a blow out that’s the thing I love about this game that it wasn’t a blow out it was a hard fought game with Utah quarterback Travis Wilson going 23-24 for 234 yards, and two touchdowns and for Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan 15-27 for 246 yards and one touchdown.

Michelle Richardson does commentary on the NCAA each week for Sportstalk Radio

Kings arena: public subsidy losing support as voters want to withdraw signatures

Published on October 12, 2013 by lleonardbw1 Comment

by Ken Gimblin

SACRAMENTO–The anti Sacramento arena group Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed To Pork or STOP have admitted that of the over 22,000 signatures to put a ballot measure asking voters should the city use public subsidies for any new sports facilities and this would include the new Kings arena project at the cost of $258 million are not sure of those signatures whose are legitimate.

Stop’s spokesman John Hyde said of the signatures, “we really have no idea who these people are” and admitted that some of the forms that STOP had signed might have been submitted by people who never signed STOP’s petition in the first place. If it turns out to be so this will further damage STOP’s credibility as they were involved with Seattle hedge fund manager Chris Hansen who lost his bid to buy and move the Kings out of Sacramento to Seattle and now there’s questions as to the signatures of the petitions that their holding.

Hansen was fined for missing the registration deadline of filing the petitions for the ballot measure and had to pay a $50,000 fine to the department of elections. Hansen has since disavowed his involvement with the petition campaign despite sources saying Hansen had paid a Los Angeles law firm Loeb and Loeb to organize and represent the campaign.

Upon learning of Hansen’s dealings voters who signed the petition are now moving to have their names removed from the forms according the Joshua Wood of DowntownArena.org. Withdraw forms were submitted to the city clerk’s office. The city clerk is going through some 1,500 signatures to see if they are valid if proven to be valid it would increase the withdraw volume up to 3,100.

Wood said that the great number of withdraws are unprecedented and that it’s a reflection of Hansen’s involvement with the signature campaign and then backing out and saying he wasn’t a part of it and apologizing for being involved in the campaign. Hansen thought the better of it after the NBA said they were not please with his actions and that his credibility with the league was near shot over this in any future bid to get an NBA team.

The city council agreed to a subsidy on public funds back in March by barrowing off any future sales tax that will pay back the public funds from arena parking and city public parking, also from ticket and concession sales made at the new downtown arena.

Ken Gimblin is covering the Sacramento Kings with Charlie O and Tony Renteria for Sportstalk radio

Just marvelous, Justin Verlander

Published on October 11, 2013October 11, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

OAKLAND–There is a reason the Detroit Tigers gave Justin Verlander a 7-year extension(with an option for the 2020 season) for $180 million this past March.That is twice the total payroll of the Oakland A’s. On game five of the American League Divisional Series, Verlander gave a pitching exhibition.

The Oakland A’s bats had no chance. Verlander was a master, mixing his over 96 mph four seam fastball, with a slider in the mid 80’s, an unhittable curve ball, (his best pitch last night), and an ocassional change,just to remind A’s hitter that on this night he was the devil, that produced 10 strike outs and zero runs for eight innings. Justin Verlander, has won just about everything a pitcher can win, except a World Series ring.

He was the Rookie of the Year in 2006, he has two no-hitters, he has won a Cy Young and an MVP Award. Rafael Belliard, an old friend, and first base coach for the Detroit Tigers told me prior to game five at the Oakland Coliseum: “We are confident with Verlander, he is one of the best, and we have been focused on one thing, and one thing only- since Spring Training, going back to the World Series and winning this time”.

The Detroit Tigers were the favorites during last year’s World Series, but the Giants surprised everybody and swept them. After Miguel Cabrera hit his first home run of this postseason in the fourth inning, you knew the game was over. I made a remark on the broadcast that the way Verlander was pitching those 2 runs he had of support, seemed like 8 runs. Verlander did not allowed a runner until he walked Josh Reddick with one out in the sixth.

He had a no-hitter with two outs in the seventh, until Yoenis Céspedes got a clean line shot for a base hit into center field. The best player this year for the A’s was Josh Donaldson, their third baseman, but the best athlete and best ballplayer is Yoenis Céspedes, and by-the-way he was their best hitter again in the postseason, establishing records for Oakland A’S in postseason.

But back to Justin. In two games, during this five game Divisional Series, Justin Verlander did not allowed a run and struck out 21 Athletics. Going back to the 2012 postseason, Verlander has pitched 30 consecutive scoreless innings against Oakland.

A crowd of 46,959 was rocking all night (not a sellout) traditionally games that start at 5PM at the Oakland Coliseum do not sell out, it is not a “comfortable”hour, and then to increase the traffic stress, there was a “Pink”concert next door at the Oracle Arena, which got starter around 7PM.

It was a good season for the Oakland A’s, they won their division for the second time in a row, but last night the best team won. Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera playing with one leg, is better than 40% of the regular players on the field that are 100%.

Congratulations Tigers, good luck the rest of the way. The Red Sox should not be easy, they never are, specially at Fenway.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for the Oakland A’s and does News and Commentary weekly for Sportstalk Radio

Larry Levitt on Sharks and Bulls hockey

Published on October 10, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by Larry Levitt

DALY CITY–The San Jose Sharks who opened up their first three games at SAP Arena and won all three there’s nothing like home cooking that makes a big difference. The team is well rounded they have strength throughout all four lines now. The fourth line is a little weaker than what I would have expected but surprisingly their coming through really strong probably the biggest surprise obviously is just analyzing the guys individually it looks like Joe Pavelski has taken his game to another level too.

Pavelski is one of those players that’s out on the ice a lot and does a lot of the little things that doesn’t get noticed by most people and it’s really exciting to see him have a good year. For Tomas Hertl scoring four goals on Tuesday night against the New York Rangers he doesn’t speak much English so maybe when the fans are yelling at him he doesn’t get too excited and doesn’t realized what he’s done or what he hasn’t done and he’s a 19 year old rookie.

Hertl is exciting the best part he puts the fun back into the game he’s always smiling and on the other hand you have to feel sorry for the Rangers they were playing on back to back nights coming from Los Angeles where they played the Kings the night before and it was a tough game. They really didn’t have their legs and were always slow to the puck and there have never been more pucks that have bounced the right way than that night.

Everytime the puck went off something it went right to a Shark and Joe Thornton got a lucky bounce it was a clearing pass it went off the end of a stick that was laying on the ice that was broken and went right to Thornton so he was able to pass it right up to Hertl and there was a goal. Every bounce seemed to go right for the Sharks that night to a Shark player.

The Rangers goalie Hendrick Lundquist was pulled from the game and sometimes when you pull the goalie to make a statement to your team because they’re not playing well and sometimes you pull the goalie because he’s not playing well. It was a combination of both but the team didn’t really support him at the beginning the Rangers did get the first goal of the game but it was on a five on three power play but after that they really didn’t support him. They were really slow to the puck and when they were shooting it and getting the puck they were trying to knock it off the boards and it would bounce right to the Sharks players.

The Sharks win that one 9-2 and played the Canucks on Thursday night and continue their winning streak now at 4-0 after winning their first road game in Vancouver.

San Francisco Bulls update: Bulls head coach Pat Curcio is quite a head coach and he’s really helped a lot of players and one of the players actually made it to the NHL playing for Toronto they see that Curcio has a lot of heart he’s put a lot into the team and therefore their going to try and benefit from that and make their career better for that reason.

The Bulls are an exciting club to watch in their first year they did very well they made the playoffs their expectations were set any lower. The thing is just keep that exciting brand of hockey going and keep it out in the neighborhood that their playing well and playing hard and the people who are really enjoying the sport will come watch them.

The longest part of travel for the Bulls are when they make their long trek to Alaska to play the Aces which they have on tap for the first week in April. The Bulls will miss the freezing ice and snow and the beginning of April will work for them. The players love to play the sport it’s just a matter of the travel and once your in the ice rink and skating it’s all just a game.

As far as the travel when your in a minor league set up like the ECHL your going to have the buses your going to have the long drives not as much luxury but that’s part of paying your dues to get in the Big Boy league.

The Bulls have a long eight game road trip to open up the season with the rodeo coming to the Cow Palace which takes precedence so they’ll melt the ice after these two pre season games at the Cow Palace. The Bulls will go on the road and sometimes being on the road forces a team together more and maybe be more solid of team players. There’s no where to hide when your own the road. Your so close to each other and that might be a benefit if they play their cards right they make it a benefit.

Larry Levitt does weekly commentary on San Francisco Bulls and San Jose Sharks hockey for Sportstalk Radio

A’s play most important elimination game in 25 years

Published on October 10, 2013October 10, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

OAKLAND–Tonight(5:07PM) the Oakland Athletics will face the Detroit Tigers in an elimination game. The winner travels to Boston to open the American League Championship Series against the Red Sox, the other team goes home.

But why is tonight the most important game in the past quarter century for the A’s?

–For starters, they will face again the same pitcher that eliminated them last year, Justin Verlander on the fifth and final game of the Divisional Series.

–For over 25 years the Oakland Athletics have not been able to go “deep into the postseason”, under three different ownerships.

–I was there for those great championship seasons, the five pennant and three consecutive trips to the World Series in 1988, 1989 and 1990. Those were the days when the Oakland A’s rocked the bay. The Walter Haas ownership was without a doubt the best ever for the A’s and one of the best ever in the history of professional sports in the bay area.

–One year prior to that great run (1987) the Athletics hosted the Major League All Star Game, Oakland was the talk of the Bay Area. I remember as a part of the Oakland A’s All Star Committee, appointed by the A’S, we met with then Mayor of Oakland Lionel Wilson. Oakland was a city on the move. Good things were happening in Oakland, and the Oakland A’s greatly helped into that great civic pride.

–Today the Oakland Coliseum is an antiquated place to play baseball in a time in history were every other team seems to have a brand new and fan friendly park. A victory tonight, puts the A’S in the American League Championship Series and just four more wins from a fifth World Series title.

–An A’s team than wins a World Series this year could be extremely important for the future of this franchise, where they are going to play, and if they will be able to move to San José, per owners Wolff and Fisher desires. The Athletics in the World Series this year, would put the baseball park issue ‘front and center’, no way Commissioner Selig could hide from that. His blue ribbon commission has spent over 4 years trying to make a decision on the move of the A’s to San José, four years and no decision(World War II lasted around six years).

–But most important a win tonight for Bob Melvin’s A’s is a huge step in returning the prestige the luster back,of this franchise, after the last few years of the “party”across the bay at a truly beautiful stadium.

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One of these teams will win the 2013 World Series, in alphabetical order: Athletics, Cardinals, Dodgers, Red Sox and Tigers, that’s it – it will be reduced tonight by one more team leaving and going home. They are all traditional franchises that have been operating in one same town for over a century, except the Athletics and Dodgers)

Michael Duca on A’s and Giants

Published on September 18, 2013September 18, 2013 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by Michael Duca

OAKLAND–When it comes to Josh Donaldson he’s probably the best player the American League left off the All-Star roster and there’s little doubt that Donaldson has been pretty consistent and is number two in the A.L. in WAR which is one of those stats when you go to replace a player all year and that’s probably the best one or actually judging a player. He’s just about the best in the A.L. at providing victories for a team both offensively and defensively.

Donaldson has played an outstanding third base he would probably be the leading candidate for the gold glove if it weren’t for Mario Marchado in Baltimore and he is amongst the best offensive third baseman in the A.L. if it weren’t for the Miguel Cabrera guy in Detroit. He’s sort of the avis of third basemen in the A.L. second best defensively, second best offensively, probably best all around.

Donaldson in the playoffs: To know how Josh Donaldson is going to do in the playoffs is something you can’t ask before the playoffs. How big of a role was the Giants Marco Scutaro last year? Nobody was expecting that, how big of a role was the former Giant Cody Ross in 2010? Nobody was expecting that. What happens in the playoffs was because teams have been scouted for weeks, weeks, and more weeks the key players tend to get shut down and the role players tend to play the biggest roles for the winning teams because if the role players who come and provide the offense allow a game to go far in the playoffs it’s the unexpected it’s the team tendators who show up out of nowhere.

Angel Pagan is carrying the Giants offense: People in the pressbox laugh when I say the Giants Angel Pagan has proved he’s the Most Valuable Player in the National League. By a real definition the term MVP he’s clearly the most valuable player to his team because they were in first place when he got hurt. Then the Giants played 20 games below .500 while he was gone and since his return they’ve climbed from the cellar back to third place.

There isn’t any question how important he is to the team, the best way to explain him is he gives the maximum effort and demands maximum effort and produces a higher level of energy within the clubhouse and on the field amongst their teammates. Who could ever forget last year watching the fast clap, the sunflower seed throwing, all of that stuff that outsiders think of is silly and a little boyish is really good how seriously good athletes manage to alleviate the pressure of playoffs.

It’s to revert to being little boyish, it’s to revert to going out and having fun when you perform and you relax and you let your talent to take over and that’s what Pagan did for the Giants last year and that’s what Hunter Pence did for them last year much like Juan Uribe did for them in 2010.

The way the Giants have played winning seven out of their last nine is their late September test against really good competition unless they had something to lose and I think the Giants will do really well to finish up the season. The Giants will be able to demonstrate a little bit more long ball power in the upcoming series at Yankee Stadium and the Giants pitching staff will probably do a good job in that ball park also because they throw a lot of ground balls.

The most important thing that’s going to come out of that series is the Giants are going to carry away with them forever the memory of being there for Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera’s last regular season home game and to see what the Yankees have planned for the future Hall of Famer.

Michael Duca does commentary each week for the Giants and A’s for Sportstalk