Category: Oakland Athletics

by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

All the 30 Major League teams are in full work-out mode during this 2015 Spring Training and within days of the first exhibition games will take place in Arizona and Florida. We remember the glorious history of Spring Training baseball. In 1942 the Brooklyn Dodgers held their training in Havana, Cuba, and with frequency the Cincinnati Reds during the 1940’s and 1950’s legendary players like Jackie Robinson visited Cuba during this time of the year.

The Detroit Tigers played a series of games against a Cuban national team; with the Detroit Tigers there was the great Ty Cobb. Babe Ruth played a series of games in Cuba as he was added to a New York Giants team under manager John McGraw, during the exhibition. Great Cuban black players like Cristóbal Torriente and Jesús Méndez played against McGraw’s stars and after one game John McGraw said: “I wish I could paint Méndez and Torriente white, I would take them with me to the Major Leagues”, while Babe Ruth said while in Cuba: “with Torriente and Méndez on my team, we will win the pennant in September”.

Cuba had teams in the US professional leagues, like the New York Cubans and the Cuban Stars, teams of the US Negro Leagues. Later regular teams in the International League like the Havana Cubans, and Cuban Sugar Kings. In 1959 the Cuban Sugar Kings(an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds)won the title in the International League.

Today, the possibility is there for Major League teams to return to Cuba and have their Spring Training there, according to Tony Clark, President of the Major League Players Association the US and Cuba are in negotiations to allow MLB teams to travel to Cuba in the future for Spring Training, once diplomatic relations are re-established between the two nations.

These two countries have traditions in baseball unlike any other. Three years after the first baseball game was played in Cuba(December 27,1874)between the Habana and Matanzas teams at Palmar del Junco Stadium, an international event was organized with a US team, who visited the Port of Matanzas on a ship, and on the 29th of December Cuba’s professional league was inaugurated in a game between Habana and Almendares.

These two teams had the greatest rivalry in Cuba and where instrumental in the developing of baseball in the country. Later on the Cuban Winter League had two more teams, Cienfuegos and Marianao, they would play every weekend. This reporter as a kid saw players in Cuba(play in that league)like Orestes(Minnie Miñoso), Brooks Robinson, Jim Bunning, Camilo Pascual,Bob Shaw, Cookie Rojas,and many others that also played here in the US big leagues.

Prior to the eradication of professionalism by the Cuban government in 1961, there was a great connection and brotherhood between Cuban and American players. Not only Cuban players wore the uniforms of many Major League teams, but also many American players would travel to Cuba to play in the Cuban Professional Winter League, considered then, as the best baseball professional league outside the Major Leagues.

Oakland-born Bill Werle(1920-2010)who was a pitcher for the Pirates,Cardinals and Red Sox, once told me: “I used to play in Cuba in the winter league, it was the best league after the majors, and everybody wanted to go and play there, because they also played the best”.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for the Oakland A’s and is the Spanish TV voice for the L.A. Angels on Time/Warner Communications and does That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

The news of former Chicago White Sox great Minnie Minoso’s death is deeply felt by the White Sox organization, the Sox plan to have a dedication for Minoso 92, before their first pre season game which is scheduled this Wednesday March 4th against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cuban born Minoso in his first at bat with the White Sox hit a two run homer and became the first black man to play for the White Sox in that at bat in 1951.

The Cook County Coroner said that Minoso had passed away on Sunday morning at 1 AM at a filling station he reportedly was found in his car in the driver’s seat and had died of a heart attack due to clogged arteries this was determined after Minoso had a autopsy that found he died from a torn pulmonary artery. Minoso earlier Saturday evening had celebrated a friends birthday and had stopped off afterwards at the gas station. Minoso broke into the majors with the Cleveland Indians in 1949 but was later traded in a three man deal to the White Sox before the 1951 season. In 17 seasons he played 12 of them were with the Sox.

Minoso also hit for average with a .307 average, 135 homers, and 808 RBIs, in 1983 the White Sox retired Minoso’s number 9. The Sox placed a statue of Minoso outside of U.S. Cellular Field. There is one photo of Minoso talking to his statue during the dedication, Minoso was decked out in a fancy suit for the occasion. He was quite honored at the dedication of his statue.

Minoso was a right handed hitter and while it’s very rare for a player to get a first at bat home run when they make their first appearance for a club Minoso did it in his first at bat with the Sox in 1951 when he hit one for a two run dinger off New York Yankees righty pitcher Vic Raschi. Minoso was mostly a leftfielder and was known as the “Cuban Comet.”

Minoso played in five different decades and was one of two major leaguers who played in five decades. Minoso in 1976 at the age of 53 got his final big league hit. In 1980 at the age of 57 Minoso he came to bat twice going 0-2 in 1980 in his final big league appearance. White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf said of Minoso, “when I watch Minnie Minoso play, I thought I was looking at a Hall of Fame player. I never understood why Minnie was never elected.”

Minoso won three gold gloves and was elected to the MLB All-Star game nine times, he finished fourth four times as the top A.L. vote getter for an MVP award. Minoso also is ninth on baseball’s all time hit by pitch list he was hit 192 times. Former Cincinnati Reds first baseman and Cuban born player Tony Perez said that ever since he was a kid he wanted to be like Minoso, “Every young player in Cuba wanted to be like Minnie Minoso and I was one of them. The way he played the game, hard all the time, hard. He was very consistent playing the game. He tried to win every game. And if I want to be like somebody and I picked Minnie you have to be consistent.” said Perez

Listen to Amaury’s podcast below regarding Minnie Minoso right here on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

The Oakland A’s have a ambidextrous pitcher with Pat Venditte and the Giants are trying to stay a winner for this 2015 season. It’s going to be a great spring training, Barry Zito is back as a non-rostered invitee with the A’s Zito a former Cy Young Award winner over a decade ago. Everything looks good. Like I said in spring training 30 teams are in first place.

Every team is talking about “we have a shot” whether your the Astros, Phillies, A’s or one of the worst teams in the Majors spring is the best time of the year for baseball. Even if someone struck out multiple times everyone is happy to be at spring training, spring training is a great time to go down to Arizona.

I have been going to Arizona when there were only four or five teams it was the A’s, Cleveland, Brewers, Cubs, Giants, and Padres before the 1977 expansion. Now you have 15 teams in the Cactus League. You have half the teams in MLB that train in the Valley of the Sun as the former A’s announcer Bill King used to call it.

Things have changed a lot in Arizona for example in downtown Phoenix I remember going to the Pink Pony, it was a water hole for the media and guys like Billy Martin who did some interviews there. You could drive into Phoenix and I would fly out of a Bay Area into Phoenix and during those early days you could come into town and get a hotel room.

You can’t do that any more, if you want a decent place you had to make reservations several months in advance because everything is sold out. Right now there are thousands of people there planning their vacations around spring training, then you have the Giants who have won in recent years. There was a time when people could careless about the Giants, now the Giants sell out every game in Scottsdale.

I remember with the A’s the same thing, there was a good size amount of media and fans who would make the trip to Arizona, but now you have thousands and thousands of fans. This is good news for the Arizona economy as the Phoenix economy is thriving now and this is one of the best times of the year for baseball. Remember they had the Super Bowl in Phoenix at the first part of the year and has been a very good one with fans coming to Arizona spending their money.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to Amaury’s podcast below

by Michael Duca

SCOTTSDALE AZ–In the last year Arizona made accessing to Surprise more accessible I guess when you win the American League title (Kansas City Royals) your ball park gets treated better. For the Chicago Cubs it’s whole different kettle of wax out there that’s an absolutely gorgeous stadium. The place looks like Wrigley Field and I got to go out there once last year and I was really impressed and I loved the exposed iron work.

They made the gates baseball green, it’s a really lovely location, it’s a lovely stadium, they did have the brickwall not of ivy but of vines, I don’t remember what kind of vines they are, but they don’t grow very well in 175 degree heat when you get down here in August. You can water all you want but there’s a limit.

Giant relievers to the rescue: Hunter Strickland comes off that unforgettable World Series where he almost started a brawl after yelling at Royals baserunner catcher Salvador Perez who actually took steps towards the mound and was intercepted by the plate umpire. Strickland comes cheap and he throws hard and was a strike thrower in the minor leagues.

If he’s able to tuck his postseason mishap away smile about it everytime he looks down at his World Championship ring and forget about it otherwise, he’ll be just fine. That’s what you look for in a relief pitcher is the ability to forget about the bad outing. They all happen every single one of them has an outing like those he just had the misfortune of having his on the biggest stage.

Former A’s third baseman Eric Chavez joins the A’s broadcast booth: Winner of six Gold Gloves former A’s third baseman Eric Chavez will be joining the Oakland A’s broadcast booth. The media will certainly enjoy having Chavez around the pressbox where he can share some of his insight and expertise into the game.

We will have the opportunity to sit down and chat with him and he’ll talk about third base play and how it’s done. One thing that I pride myself as an official scorer that I get to go to some of the outstanding fielders and ask them to give me tips on how the position should be played. Things to look for so I can do a better job at judging players who might misplay a ball.

Former Giant J.T. Snow taught me a whole lot about foot work around the bag at first base and who better to learn about playing shortstop than from former Giant shortstop Omar Vizquel. I picked his brains for all I could. I will do the same with Chavey. This is a guy who played that position at the highest possible level for a better part of a decade.

Michael Duca is covering the Giants and A’s in spring training listen to his podcast below at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

by Michael Duca

OAKLAND–It will be wonderful to see what they’ve done with old yard in Mesa the Oakland A’s remodeled training facility. The way it used to be they used to have a huge long chain link fence at one time that went all the way down to the foul poles and a plywood pressbox where you felt like you were watching a game in a prison because everybody felt they were so fairly fenced off from the players.

This might not be better than the A’s clubhouse at the Coliseum, it’s still the A’s spring training your still going to have between 40-60 guys in there. It’s a different kind of situation, you have guys coming and going all spring long, there’s five different days when cuts are made and players move onto minor league camp.

You be assured that there will be a distinct improvement, the minor league facility is the one that has undergone a lot of changes at Ho Ho Kam Stadium and the Chicago Cubs worked out there in spring training for decades. The A’s have more than doubled the size of that facility and they have really turned it into quite a project.

The A’s with the City of Mesa along with a tax fund which is from all the folks who attend spring training are really the first to start the funding there. A lot of that money comes from the people who make the mistake of renting a car during the month of March down there when it’s non March date they’ll hit customers up for regular rental fee but not during spring training. The stadium itself hasn’t moved Ho Ho Kam Park you could say it’s in a quite neighborhood, it’s across the street from a 300 acre cemetery. It’s very quite a marble orchard.

Ex-Giant pitcher Charlie Williams who was traded to San Francisco from the New York Mets during spring training 1973 for Willie Mays passed away at the age of 67 on January 27th. There aren’t too many trades in baseball that make both teams unhappy and that was one of them. Giants fans during the early years never really super accepted Willie Mays in San Francisco they always loved Willie McCovey and Orlando Cepeda more because they started out as San Francisco players and neither were an import from New York.

The Giants fans really never really gave Williams a fair opportunity to earn a place in their heart, New York fans of course had already seen the miracle Mets of 1969 and the Mets were a pretty good team back then and what they got back in 1973 was just a shell of the real Willie Mays. I remember seeing Mays final base hit as a Met in the 1973 World Series in Oakland against the A’s, he got the hit late in the game and he did wind up on first base. He fell down on the way to first base, it was sad to watch because Mays stayed a year longer than his legacy deserved.

Williams for the Giants split the 1973 season between minor league Phoenix and San Francisco before making the big club for good in 1974 and stayed with the Giants until 1978. Williams passed away in January due to complications from heart surgery with clogged arteries. He was 67.

Michael Duca is covering the A’s and the Giants in Spring Training for http://www.sportsrsadioservice.com listen to his podcast below

by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

TEMPE AZ–This week pitchers and catchers report to Arizona and Florida for 2015 Spring Training. Reading the reports for most teams optimism is running high, even Barry Zito is now joining the Athletics for the first time since he won the Cy Young for the green and gold, who says he has a new pitching style. That was a low risk pick-up for the A’s, if he comes back in the form as the good Zito, the A’s win, if he does not, they let him go, no harm no foul. Many things have changed in the game of baseball, but one thing that remains a constant is that you really never have enough pitching; so the Barry Zito signing in a way is a win-win for the A’s. And if Zito has nothing left? He might want to retire with the A’s, the A’s have a sellout at the Coliseum on Barry Zito Day and everybody is happy. Does anybody believes the Giants would have won last October without Madison Bumgarner?

Meanwhile half dozen teams still in pursuit of Cuban infielder Héctor Olivera, all dangling a $70 million multi-year contract on the rookie, with the Los Angeles Dodgers looking as the front runners as of today. Starting this week the Athletics will train at Hohokam Park, in Mesa, Arizona, with a capacity of 12,500. The Giants continue at Scottsdale, plus another 13 teams in the Phoenix area opening their camps. All California teams train now in Arizona, A’s(Mesa),Giants(Scottsdale),Angels(Tempe),Dodgers,(Glendale), and Padres(Peoria).

Having traveled to the Phoenix Area for Spring Training, every year for the past 30 years, I have seen the amazing transformation of the Valley of the Sun. For example, because a total of 15 teams have their training camps there, you must make accommodations no later than early January, if you want to have a good place to stay. Hotels are close to capacity at this time of the year. Spring is the perfect time for Arizona, an average of 75 to 80 degrees everyday and if you like baseball, this is heaven for you. Snowbirds drive down with their trailers and camp for weeks, many big baseball fans. One of the most favorite teams that train there are the Chicago Cubs, who will continue to train in Mesa, in a sensational new facility, (the biggest and the best I have seen so far). I visited that Cubs facility last spring, when they inaugurated a replica of historic Wrigley Field.

There is nothing wrong with Spring Training in Arizona, maybe the traffic is the biggest negative, but if you have the time, and you are a baseball fan, you can’t go wrong. You can hop from park to park on one day, or you can stay and watch one team all day. If you stay in the Phoenix Area, most teams are within 45 minutes by car.Thousands of people from all over California, plan their vacations this time of the year, others just fly for the weekends, it is a quick hour to hour and half flight from most places in California. You can drive it also, depends where you live, from the Bay Area, plan on an all day drive from sunrise to sunset.

Giants and Indians were the pioneers in Arizona. The now famous Cactus League, became a reality in 1947, when Horace Stoneham’s New York Giants and Bill Veeck’s Cleveland Indians began to open their camps in Phoenix and Tucson. For Bill Veeck’s Indians it was easy, since he owned ranches in the Tucson area. Other teams that previously have trained out west were the Chicago Cubs, who in 1905 training in Santa Monica(LA)California. The Cubs liked California so much back then, that between 1922 and 1942 they had their Spring Training camp in Catalina Island, and then again in 1950 and 1951.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish radio voice and the Los Angeles Angels Spanish TV voice and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

by Tony The Tiger Hayes

The jury is out on Biogenesis founder Anthony Bosch, Bosch was convicted by a federal judge on a conspiracy charge of illegal distribution of illegal drugs and was sentenced to four years in federal prison. Major League Baseball attorneys drew up a voucher for Bosch seeking leniency because Bosch had cooperated in revealing his sources of who he distributed to.

Bosch outted Major League players the New York Yankees Alex Rodriguez and the Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun of the high profile players who were using performance enhancers. Bosch had been on bail until trial after pleading guilty to the distribution charge he was also in drug treatment for a cocaine addiction.

Bosch helped point out that A-Rod was a PED user after distributing to him, the deal was that he would rat out players that he distributed to in exchange for MLB lawyers to ask the courts to award Bosch leniency. MLB found that the information provided by Bosch crucial in finding out who is using banned substances after MLB had established policies for such infractions.

A-Rod was suspended for the entire 2014 season as a result of PED use, A-Rod was preparing to sue MLB for banning him but regrouped and dropped the lawsuit in exchange for baseball allowing A-Rod to return this season with the Yankees. MLB lawyers were so grateful for Bosch’s help that they drew up a ten page letter that outlined his testimony as a cooperating witnesses against it’s players.

U.S.Distict Judge Darrin Gayles ruled that Bosch was distributing illegal drugs and that he followed the gammit of the law by sentencing Bosch to four years in Federal prison. MLB lawyers had outlined that Bosch’s help was “critical” in outing the users in MLB also the attorneys said that what Bosch did was “important to public interest.”

Gayles disregarded MLB’s attempt to help Bosch and Gayles said that Bosch was “the mastermind of the operation” and that “a stiff sentence is appropriate”. Also the court told Bosch’s attorneys that Bosch had to return back to jail 60 days early before the trial. Bosch’s clients included high school students and that Bosch had passed himself off as a doctor in South Florida.

Tony The Tiger Hayes is a talk show host on Sportstalk on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

TEMPE–There is no doubt, for the past few years Cuban players have been the hottest commodity.There has been so much talk about the Cuban players and Cuba, that the Asian invasion of a few years ago has been all but forgotten. Remember when Japanese players were coming into the majors, and big press conferences were put together to announce the most recent import to the game? That has subsided, but at the same time the Cuban market has gone crazy.

The Oakland Athletics have shown interested, along with the Giants, Padres and Dodgers(among others)in 29-year old Cuban infielder Hector Olivera, who many scouts believe could be a middle of the order hitter in the Athletics lineup, and in a totally different infield this season for the A’s. He could be a good deal for the bargain-hunting Oakland A’s if they can land the free-agent -the A’s would not have to pay a luxury tax.

Not long ago(last eight years or so) you could count with the fingers on one hand the Cuban players in the major leagues. In 2014, between 25 to 30 Cubans players were in the majors, and there will be more playing in 2015. Red Sox speedster-outfielder Rusney Castillo, could make a big difference on top of the Boston Red Sox lineup, a Boston team that could go from last to first in their division this year. Yoenis Céspedes is now on his third team since he first played with the A’s. He has played in Boston and this season will be playing for the Detroit Tigers, and is poised to have his best season at Comerica Park, a great place for a right handed power hitter.

Meanwhile in Chicago, the Rookie of The Year, first baseman José Abreu will be on his second season with the Chicago White Sox, one of the most improved teams in baseball this winter. Yasiel Puig who is the poster child for the crop of talented Cuban players of recent memory, now feels more comfortable with the Dodgers, as he plays with the enthusiasm and the talent that puts him in a class by himself, an MVP waiting to happen, but like a precious stone that needs to be polished,he will bet better, he is one of those special players that people pay just to see.

So are Cuban players overrated? I do not think so. These Cuban players arriving today, are ready to play,at least at the Triple A, level, but most are major league caliber. After defecting from Cuba, these players usually make it to the Big Show in an average of two years. That’s very good, they know that the contract is awaiting, that teams are sending scouts all over the world to give them a look. The Cuban players, know that they are a very hot commodity in today’s very wealthy Major League Baseball. It is good to see that the pioneer Latin country when it came to players in the major leagues is coming back. Recently the Cuban team won their first Caribbean Baseball Series as the beat México 3-2 in the final game. It was the first win for Cuba in the tournament that they used to dominate since 1960.(First Caribbean Series was in La Habana, Cuba in 1949)

The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum at the Athletics Fanfest.

Oakland Athletics Cuban-born right hander reliever Dan Otero, sat with yours truly at The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame table, during the Oakland A’S 2015 Fanfest. Around 15,000 A’S fans showed up, during a stormy day to see their heroes. Otero signed for approximately 30 minutes at our table and he seemed to really enjoy it as he signed autographs and have his picture taken with fans of all ages. He told me “estoy listo para el entrenamiento” trans: “I am ready for Spring Training”.

President’s Day and Baseball:

America’s affinity baseball made its way to the White House during the Taft administration. President William Howard Taft was the first American president to throw out the ceremonial first pitch in 1910. It was opening day for the Washington Senators at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. Since Taft, every U.S. President has thrown out at least one first pitch inaugurating a season. Richard Nixon was probably the most savvy of US Presidents, when it came to baseball. The great New York baseball writer Dick Young once wrote about President Nixon: “Richard Nixon would have to top the list of presidential baseball fans. “This isn’t a guy that shows up at season openers to take bows and get his picture in the paper and has to have his secretary of state tell him where first base is. This man knows baseball.”

Have a happy and safe President’s Day weekend.

Amaury Pi-González is on his 38th season as major league broadcaster, Spanish Voice for the Oakland A’S radio network, and also play by play for the LA Angels on Anaheim on the Fox Sports West/Español in southern California. Amaury also does News and Commentary each week for http://www.sportsradioservice.com