Tag: Oakland B’s

Major League Baseball Update podcast with Michael Duca: Giants will have to wait until July for Ray; A’s had good reason to not allow B’s to play at Coliseum in June

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Former Seattle Mariners pitcher Robbie Ray in the M’s dugout after being lifted in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians on Fri Mar 31, 2023 at T Mobile in Seattle has joined the San Francisco Giants pitching staff on Fri Jan 5, 2024. Ray is recovering from Tommy John surgery and is not expected back until July 2024. (AP News file photo)

On the MLB Update podcast:

#1 Michael just wanted to kick off the podcast with the deal that the Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants sewed up on Friday. The Giants got pitcher Robbie Ray and in exchange for outfielder Mitch Haniger, pitcher Anthony DeSclafani and $6 million on the surface of it who got the better of the deal?

#2 The other part of the deal Ray is owed $73 million and has a $24 million opt out over the next three seasons. Haniger formerly played with the Mariners and will be returning how well will he be received by his old fans.

#3 Ray is the key focus of the deal he’s not expected to make his Giants debut until July. Ray is recovering from Tommy John surgery. How confident are the Giants they’re not getting damaged goods and that Ray will be an impact pitcher for the pitching staff.

#4 Michael, turning the Oakland B’s the Pioneer League team that wants to use the Oakland Coliseum for just one game on Thu Jun 29 but the A’s have exclusive rights to play baseball at the Coliseum. The Ballers had a license agreement with the Coliseum Joint Authority. The A’s are saying absolutely not.

#5 The Ballers and their co-founder said that he was inspired by last season’s reverse boycott and said it was a emotional healing event for Oakland. How offended are the A’s by the Ballers support for the reverse boycott from last season and the upcoming boycott on opening night that might have brought the decision not to allow the B’s to play at the Coliseum.

Michael Duca is a MLB analyst for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Oakland Ballers–Rooted in Oakland

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Oakland Ballers executive vice president of baseball Operations Don Wakamatsu speaks during a news conference Tuesday at Laney College in Oakland, Calif. (Associated Press)

Oakland Ballers – -Rooted in Oakland

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

OAKLAND–As the sign “Rooted in Oakland” is scheduled to be removed from the west wall of the Oakland Coliseum before the beginning of the 2024 season, another team has been rooted in Oaktown. They are the Oakland Ballers or the Oakland B’s.

The group says they have raised $2 million from investors and pledged to the community that they “will never leave Oakland.” Anybody can become a part owner of the team by contributing to this initial push. Like the NFL Green Bay Packers, the Packers are owned by more than 500,000 community shareholders. Owned by the city’s fans.

This Tuesday, the independent Pioneer League announced that it will add a new expansion team, the Oakland Ballers, to the newly planned Pacific West Division. The Pioneer League is an independent baseball league that operates in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States.

Its teams are not directly affiliated with Major League Baseball. It is designated as an MLB Partner League. So, Oaklanders can now claim: “We already have an expansion team.”

Starting in 2024, the Oakland Ballers will play in the Independent League. There are two types of professional minor league systems: Independent and Affiliated. The Ballers will be Independent and, therefore, not affiliated to any of the 30 major league teams.

This league is considered a Rookie-level league. And the teams are Missoula PaddleHeads, Ogden Raptors, Rockey Mountain Vibes, and Billings Mustangs.

The Oakland B’ s are scheduled to begin their season in May 2024 and will play their home games at the Laney College baseball field in Oakland, with a capacity of approximately 800. 

Throughout the season, each team plays in 96 games, from May to September, in a split schedule between the North Division (Billings, Missoula, Great Falls, Glacier, and Idaho Falls) and the South Division (NoCo, Rocky Mountain, Grand Junction, Boise and Ogden. (This was before the recent announcement of the Oakland Ballers.

Some might consider this some kind of a joke, but it is not. People who like organized baseball can enjoy a new team in Oakland since the: “old team, the one that won four World Series in Major League Baseball since 1968, has decided to tell Oakland fans, “Adiós, nos vamos a Las Vegas”.

Ballers Rooted in Oakland?  As Yogi Berra would say, “Déjà vu all over again.”

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead play by play voice on the Oakland A’s Spanish radio network at 1010 KIQI San Francisco and 990 KATD Pittsburg and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com