Category: San Francisco Giants

Will 49ers waive territorial rights to allow Raiders to play in the City?

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San Francisco Demons XFL file photo: AT&T Park football configuration during the 2001 season of the XFL San Francisco Demons. The Oakland Raiders and San Francisco will share the park during the 2019 season.

By Joe Hawkes Beamon

SAN FRANCISCO — Plans by the Oakland Raiders are on the drawing board and sources say it’s very close that an agreement between the Raiders and San Francisco Giants will be hammered out. Matter fact it’s understood there is an agreement on the table as of Monday morning.

If an agreement is made it’s almost assured because of the smaller size of Oracle Park compared to the Oakland Coliseum the Raiders would most likely sell out every home game plus the idea that it’s the Raiders last season in the Bay Area and many Raider and NFL fans will want to take a last look at the team before they leave.

At issue is the San Francisco 49ers who have territorial rights in San Francisco and will they allow the Raiders playing in San Francisco. The 49ers are said to be studying any possible financial loses if the Raiders play in the city. The 49ers who play in Santa Clara a good hour drive from the City may ok the deal as the Raiders will play their last season in the Bay Area at Oracle Park.

The 49ers are looking to see what they would benefit from the deal from having the Raiders playing in San Francisco and that the 49ers may ask for a cut on tickets and TV shares from the Raiders if they waive their territorial rights. The 49ers have not commented on the Raiders playing in San Francisco and negotiations are still on the way.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said last week that he wanted the Raiders to make a decision as to where they will play as soon as possible. The NFL wants to begin making the schedule for the 2019 season without further delay.

The Raiders who chose not to play at the Oakland Coliseum anymore after the city of Oakland filed a lawsuit against the team in December. The Raiders had a tentative deal with the Oakland Coliseum and withdrew after Oakland filed the suit stating that the suit was over the relocation to Las Vegas calling the deal “illegal” the city of Oakland is seeking million of dollars from the Raiders and the NFL.

For football Oracle Park would seat up to 40,000 fans. Oracle Park hosted football when the XFL’s San Francisco Demons who played there in 2001, The California Mountain Lions in 2009 of the United Football League, Cal in 2011, NCAA bowl games the Shriners, Diamond, Kraft and Foster Bowls in 2002 to 2013.

Former Giants managing partner Peter Magowan dies at 76

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

Peter Magowan, who with a last effort kept in 1992 kept the San Francisco Giants from moving to Tampa, Florida died on Sunday from complications from Cancer, he was 76 years old.

Magowan, who grew up watching the Giants in New York, where he was born and then as fate would have it, Magowan and his family moved to San Francisco, just months after the Giants moved to the Bay Area.

It was Magowan, who formed a group of people to buy the team from then owner Bob Lurie for $100 million. That winter, Magowan signed Barry Bonds to a contract worth $43.5 million over a six-year period.

After the 2008 season, and 16 years at the helm, Magowan stepped down as President and Chief Executive Officer.

Just two years later, the Giants won the first World Championship since 1954, and within a five-year period, the team would win the World Series in both 2012 and 2014.

“Peter’s mark on the Giants and the San Francisco community can be felt throughout the ballpark, in which he was intimately involved in the design and planning and throughout the daily operations of the organization,” Giants president and CEO Larry Baer said. “He set forth a Giants vision to create a winning culture and to serve our fans and the community. Over the past 25 years, we have followed through on his vision and his impact on our community will be felt for decades to come.”

Prior to the coming to the Giants, Magowan worked for Safeway Inc., and was the chairman and CEO from 1980-1993 before he stepped down after he took over the Giants.

Magowan was a big fan of Willie Mays, as he gave the Hall of Famer a lifetime contract after he took over the team. He also brought back to the organization the late Willie McCovey, who passed away on October 31 at the age of 80 and Orlando Cepeda, and the two were named Special Advisers.

Peter Magowan has been a part of my life for a long, long time, first as a fan watching me play in New York and then, remaining a fan when we moved to San Francisco,” Mays said. “Along the way, he became my friend. Peter would call me often to check in. He and Debby cared about me and it was so easy to care about them in return. It’s hard to find the right words just now, but in losing Peter, I’ve lost a great, great friend. He was like my godfather. No one can replace him.

Magowan will be inducted into the Giants Wall of Fame at the team’s annual Fanfest on February 9.

He is survived by wife Debby, five children and 12 grandchildren.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Barry Bonds Snubbed by Cooperstown Again

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

SAN FRANCISCO–In case anybody has forgotten, Barry Bonds still holds the record for the all-time home run leader with 762 over his career. Since he arrived from Pittsburgh in the early 1990’s, I traveled on the road with the Giants and Bonds under manager Dusty Baker and I called many of his home runs specially at AT&T Park (now Oracle Park) by the McCovey Cove in San Francisco. The reason he is not in the Baseball Hall of Fame is not because of his on-the field performance. Similar to pitcher Roger Clemens, who also had the same results this time.

Barry Bonds received 59.1 percent of the vote. You need 75% to get in. So the question is: Will he ever be inducted, and if so, when? I really cannot answer those questions because humans vote, and where there are committees and humans vote for these things, we never know what’s going to happen.

What we know is that in 2015 players were no longer on the Hall of Fame ballot for a maximum of 15 years. Now, it’s 10 years. So my educated prediction would be that he will make it during the next three years, and if not then it is up to the Veterans Committee. A player of Bonds’ caliber you would think is not looking forward to that committee, but maybe that is the best he could do. Giants great Orlando Cepeda was inducted by the vote of a Veterans Committee.

In baseball, like in politics and many other things, everybody has an opinion. As a player, Bonds belongs in Cooperstown. His accusations of steroids use obviously is keeping him out, there is nothing else stopping him from Cooperstown. When he went to court in San Francisco, all the public heard was Balco Laboratories and all the terminology for the steroids he allegedly used. He and the Giants didn’t enjoy very good publicity during that ordeal. And it was a circus as other players and even Mike Murphy, the longtime Giants equipment manager, had to testify that the size of his head got bigger through the years.

In conclusion, to get elected to any Hall of Fame, you need friends. And, to be honest, Bonds has a shortage of those, as of today; but like anything in life, things can change.

Headline Sports with Tony Renteria: Kaepernick return talk, he won’t be back; Giants won’t use pitching openers; Antonio Brown wants to join 49ers; plus more

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Photo credit: time.com

On Headline Sports with Tony Renteria:

#1 There’s been talk that former 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s return to the NFL is long overdue. Is there a chance for Kaepernick to return to the NFL?

#2 The San Francisco Giants most likely will not use pitching openers to start ballgames. They will use the traditional starter and relievers during an nine inning contest.

#3 Tony talks about talk that Pittsburgh Steeler Antonio Brown, who wants to play for the 49ers, will need to work out his contract with the Steelers first before leaving.

#4 Tony takes a look at the NFL Championship Final Four in the NFC. Tony says it’s New Orleans 45 and the LA Rams 38.

#5 In the AFC: New England Patriots 31 and Kansas City Chiefs 30.

Tony does the Headline Sports each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants re-sign Derek Holland to 1-year, $7 million deal

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Photo credit: @sn_mlb

By: Ana Kieu

Left-handed pitcher Derek Holland was pulled out of the free agent market Monday morning. The San Francisco Giants re-signed Holland to a 1-year, $7 million deal. So Holland will be guaranteed $7 million this coming season and will earn at least $6.5 million next season if the Giants pick up the option with incentives that could make it a $15.5 million deal over two years. The news was first reported by The Athletic.

Sure, Holland reportedly told MLB Network Radio earlier this month that the Cincinnati Reds contacted him, but he never confirmed any plans with his hometown team. Holland is a Newark, Ohio native whose nickname is “Dutch Oven.” Holland was selected 25th overall in 2006 out of Wallace State Community College in Huntsville, Alabama.  Holland spent seven years in Arlington, Texas before spending brief, 1-year stints with the Chicago White Sox and San Francisco Giants.

The Giants’ decision to re-sign Holland was an excellent one. Holland deserves a pay raise considering the fact that he arrived in San Francisco, Calif. last year as a non-roster invitee. Holland made $2 million last year, which was minimal compared to the contracts of other players in the MLB, but he ended up becoming one of the Giants’ most valuable players. Holland led the pitching rotation by tossing 171 1/3 innings and posting a 3.57 ERA with 169 strikeouts. Holland served as a starter for the most part. At times, Holland moved to the Giants bullpen, but he was able to achieve success there, too.

The Giants are reportedly expected to add more starters in an attempt to add more depth that Dereck Rodriguez and Andrew Suarez can start the 2019 MLB season in the minors and/or bullpen. Moreover, Holland was a great step that filled some of the Giants’ pitching needs.

Oracle gets naming rights, but Oracle Park draws mixed emotions

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Photo credit: @957thegame

By: Ana Kieu

All day Wednesday, Giants fans said goodbye and snapped selfies using their smartphones to bid farewell to AT&T Park, which used the name from 2006 to 2018. Previously, it was named SBC Park from 2004 to 2005 and Pacific Bell Park from 2000 to 2003.

Fast forward to Thursday morning when the Giants’ stadium staffers took to the front plaza of the waterfront ballpark and hung up a new banner that read “ORACLE PARK: Home to the San Francisco Giants.” While this shocking move took place, news outlets, fans and passerby were witnessing a change that drew mixed emotions. Some were able to soak in the new name, but many cringed at the name.

“Are we not considered one of the best stadiums in the league?” wrote a tweeter named Drew. “Can we please get something nicer that stands out in the history books like Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium does? #OraclePark”

I, myself, tweeted to ask the masses if I was the only one who wasn’t digging AT&T Park’s new name Oracle Park and got a couple of reactions. Even my friend Manny, who’s not really a sports fan, asked me: “Why would they do that? They just can’t rename history.” And I 100% percent agree with Manny along with anyone else with a similar thought like Manny’s.

Also, I think Oracle Park is a little too corporate sounding. But, you know, Oracle was the highest bidder in the bidding war and got their hands on the latest naming rights, so there’s that. Oracle is a $40 billion business software company that was founded in 1977.

“We really like the fact that Oracle is a local company,” Giants president and CEO Larry Baer told SFGate. “They’re not going anywhere. We’re not going anywhere. Having a Bay Area-based company with the naming rights was a consideration.”

At the end of the day, all Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford and company can do is play ball at Oracle Park this coming season. The same goes for the fans and media who watch the ballgames.

Giants sign switch-pitcher Pat Venditte

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By: Ana Kieu

The San Francisco Giants had some good news for their fans on Friday morning. The Giants signed switch-pitcher Pat Venditte, a free agent who last pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Venditte, a 33-year-old, also pitched for the Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays and Oakland Athletics.

In case you need a refresher, Venditte is an ambidextrous pitcher and the only MLB pitcher who throws both right and left and normally selects the better arm that would give him a platoon or statistical advantage. NBC Sports Bay Area first reported the two sides were close to an agreement.

Venditte is the first former Dodgers pitcher to cross paths with the new Giants president of baseball operations Farhad Zaidi, who most recently worked for the Dodgers. Former Dodgers prospect and outfielder Henry Ramos agreed to a minor league deal with the Giants earlier this offseason.

The Giants non-tendered right-handed pitcher Hunter Strickland at the end of November. As a result, they’ve received calls from several teams about trading some of their veteran relievers.

Venditte became the second reliever to join the Giants this offseason. Venditte follows the path of left-handed pitcher Travis Bergen, who was selected out of the Blue Jays’ organization in the Rule 5 Draft.

The Giants’ signing of Venditte was a unique signing to say the least. But the Giants got what they wanted as they added some depth to their bullpen.

Headline Sports podcast with London Marq: Shakeup at Raiders team being sued, won’t be back in Oakland after this season; GM fired this week

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yahoosports.com: Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis (left) and former general manger Reggie McKenzie in 2012 photo parted company Sunday and the City of Oakland is suing the Raiders for lost revenue caused by the Raiders moving to Vegas

On Headline Sports with London:

#1 Former Oakland Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie was fired on Sunday and not even allowed to finish the season with just three games left. Which scenario would you call this firing an honorable discharge or dishonorable discharge?

#2 When head coach Jon Gruden got on the scene, was that pretty much writing on the wall for McKenzie?

#3 Gruden stated until the last Raiders game in a presser that he and McKenzie got along just fine and there was no problem.

#4 Former Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper is this winter’s top prospect his agent. Scott Boras is still shopping for a team for Harper and apparently the Giants general manager Farhan Zaidi will be talking with Boras during this week’s Winter Meetings. Harper has been touted as a LeBron-like commodity in the free agency sweepstakes.

#5 The A’s second baseman Jed Lowrie is reportedly asking too much in free agency and the A’s might seek free agent DJ LeMahieu. Lowrie is asking for $10 million a year and a multi year deal. LeMahieu could join the A’s for one season at $10 million and the A’s won’t have to worry about a multi-year deal since the $10 million would be coming from his final year of his deal with the Colorado Rockies. Also, the A’s are looking at Troy Tulowitzki–he’s from Sunnyvale and likes that the A’s who are a post season contending team the Jays are paying his remaining $38 million salary and the A’s would pay the extra $600,000 to Tulowitski.

London does Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Raiders’ last minute TD key to third win of season; 49ers’ Kittle has record first half; A’s plan to shore up pitching this winter; plus more

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silverandblackpride.com photo: Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr throws against the Pittsburgh Steelers defense Sun Dec 9th at the Oakland Coliseum for the Raiders third win of the season

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 The Oakland Raiders pulled off a surprise win against the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-21. The key play of the game a quarterback Derek Carr pass to Derek Carrier for a 43-yard touchdown. The Raiders get their third win of the year.

#2 The 49ers got by the Denver Broncos, thanks to tight end George Kittle, who got an 85-yard touchdown pass to help fire up the team for a 20-14 win. The third win for SF of the season

#3 The A’s plan to shore up their pitching staff during the winter meetings. Mike Fiers was non tendered and the A’s will shop for some starting pitching during this winter.

#4 The San Francisco Giants need to stock their outfield this winter. Especially after their anchor Andrew McCutchen left for the Yankees late last season and Hunter Pence will not be back. That gives Giants GM Farhan Zaidi plenty of work to do.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: NAACP joins boycott against S.F. Giants and owner Johnson; Donations came after racist remark and Confederate uniform photo of Hyde-Smith

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photo from cnn.com: Mississippi Senator and Republican candidate Cindy Hyde-Smith wearing Confederate hat and carrying authentic Confederate rifle from the Civil War has received two donations from San Francisco Giants majority owner Charles B Smith

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 San Francisco Giants majority owner Charles B Johnson is feeling the heat after his second donation to Mississippi Republican candidate Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith. While Hyde-Smith leads her Democratic opponent Mike Espy by 10 points in the polls for a run off election this Friday. Johnson is feeling the heat from Giants fans for his donation to Hyde-Smith, who has made racist remarks.

#2  How much do the Giants need to cut ties with Johnson and the partners’ vote to force Johnson to sell his share to them? Johnson defended himself saying he knew nothing about Hyde-Smith being a political racist and from a legal stand point that Johnson has a legal right to donate to any candidate he deems fit.

#3 There are a number of fans who do not want to do business with the Giants some and are ready to get a refund for their season tickets or refuse to come back to AT&T Park until Johnson is out as team owner. The NAACP announced on Monday night that they have called for a boycott against the Giants.

#4 Johnson made a donation to a Mississippi candidate in the maximum of $2700 and said he didn’t know anything about Smith saying that if she was invited to a public hanging she’d want front row seats and that she wore a confederate gray uniform and had her picture taken with it on. Johnson 85 made a donation to Hyde-Smith some nine days after she made the public hanging remark.

#5 We asked Amaury if this could bring the Giants down. The Giants hold a number of heritage ethnic themes before many Giants games, but no one right now believes the Giants’ sincerity about diversity with Johnson donating money to a political bigot according to fans, the NAACP and some sports analysts.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com