Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler will be out from six to eight months recovering from should clot surgery in his throwing arm the Phillies announced on Sat Aug 23, 2025 (AP News photo)
MLB The Show podcast Charlie O:
#1 Philadlephia Phillies star pitcher Zack Wheeler underwent surgery this past week to have a blood clot removed from his throwing shoulder. Wheeler is expected to miss the remainder of the season and his recovery is expected to be six to eight months and is expected to return by opening day 2026.
#2 Bubba Chandler was all the rage at PNC Park in Pittsburgh on Friday night as the 22 year old rookie pitched in his first big league game entering in the top of the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies. Chandler is a top prospect and came through in relief pitching four innings, not allowing a a run, two hits and striking out three.
#3 On Friday the Tampa Bay Rays Carson Williams hit a home run and was 2-4 with three RBIs in his big league debut on his second day in the show. Williams said in the Rays post game show, “It’s every kid’s dream, and it just got even better.”
#4 Former Oakland Athletic and New York Met pitcher Frankie Montas has been placed on the 15 day IL with a right elbow UCL injury on Friday. Montas so far is 3-2 ERA 6.28 in nine games and had started in seven games. The Mets are six games back in the NL East behind the Philadelphia Phillies.
#5 Friday the Sacramento A’s got close but not enough as they were edged out by the Seattle Mariners 3-2. The M’s Bryan Woo pitched effectively enough to keep the A’s in check going a strong seven innings allowing one hit, one earned run, and seven strikeouts. The A’s who had just swept the Minnesota Twins got cooled off by some good pitching in Seattle.
#6 The A’s came right back on Saturday to even the series with a 2-1 win behind the great pitching of starter Jefferey Springs who pitched 5.1 allowed two hits and one earned run.
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.
Sacramento A’s players are all about the congratulations after defeating the Seattle Mariners in ten innings at T Mobile Field in Seattle on Sat Aug 22, 2025 (AP News photo)
Langeliers Lifts Sacramento to 2-1 Extra Inning Thriller
By Mauricio Segura
For nine innings at T-Mobile Park, the Sacramento Athletics and the Seattle Mariners traded zeros like boxers circling one another, neither willing to blink. It was a heated contest where every pitch carried weight, every swing felt decisive, and both lineups discovered how elusive runs can be on a night dominated by pitching and defense. The A’s finally found daylight in the tenth, seizing a 2-1 victory that showcased grit more than fireworks.
Sacramento broke the stalemate first in the fourth inning when Jacob Wilson doubled to center and Darell Hernaiz followed with a line drive single to plate him. The early run gave Jeffrey Springs something to work with, and the left-hander responded by inducing weak contact and letting his defense shine behind him.
Tyler Soderstrom was particularly steady in left field, robbing Julio Rodríguez of sharp contact and turning potential damage into outs. But Seattle wasn’t about to go quietly. Randy Arozarena, who had been kept quiet in his first two trips, tied the game with a solo blast in the sixth, a reminder that one mistake can change everything.
From that point, the bullpens traded zeroes with an almost surgical precision. Michael Kelly, Sean Newcomb, and Tyler Ferguson combined for scoreless relief, striking out five over three innings. Seattle’s arms were equally stubborn, with George Kirby and his successors silencing Sacramento bats just enough to force the game beyond regulation.
By the ninth, both clubs were gasping for a breakthrough. The Athletics nearly broke through in the eighth after a leadoff walk, but a pair of pop-ups killed the chance. Seattle likewise threatened in the seventh, only to see Victor Robles stranded at second after swiping a bag.
It took the pressure-cooker rules of extra innings to finally crack the Mariners. Colby Thomas began the tenth on second base, and Brett Harris, fresh off the bench, executed a textbook sacrifice bunt to move him to third.
The Athletics had been searching all night for one swing with meaning, and Shea Langeliers delivered it, drilling a sharp double down the right-field line to bring Thomas home. The dugout erupted, finally exhaling after so many squandered chances. Sacramento added baserunners but couldn’t stretch the lead further, leaving Seattle three outs to respond.
The Mariners threatened in the bottom half, putting runners aboard when Jorge Polanco walked and J.P. Crawford reached on a fielder’s choice. With the tying run at second and the winning run on base, Hogan Harris was called upon to clean up the mess.
He got exactly what the Athletics needed: a grounder to third from Arozarena, where Brett Harris calmly initiated the force at second to end it. The final out was less a roar than a sigh of relief, the kind of finish that underscored just how fragile the margin was all night.
Langeliers’ double will rightfully be remembered as the decisive swing, but this game belonged equally to the Athletics’ arms. Springs kept Seattle off balance, while the bullpen backed him with shutdown efficiency.
Wilson’s early knock and Hernaiz’s timely RBI set the table, and Harris’ sacrifice in extras proved just as critical as the double that followed. Baseball purists might call it a throwback game, on scoring, tight defense, and just enough offense to matter. For Sacramento, it was a statement win that showed this club can grind as hard as anyone when runs are scarce.
Starting pitchers for Sunday’s contest at T Mobile: For the A’s LHP Jacob Lopez (7-6 ERA 3.28) for the M’s RHP Logan Gilbert (3-5 ERA 3.85) first pitch at 1:10pm PT.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
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.
Fans cheer as the solo home run ball from Seattle Mariners’ Jorge Polanco flies over the fence past Athletics right fielder JJ Bleday during the seventh inning of a baseball game Friday, Aug. 22, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
A’s Ninth Inning Charge Stopped Short in Seattle 3-2 By Mauricio Segura
The Athletics opened their night at T-Mobile Park with a clean, heavy swing and a little electricity. Brent Rooker saw Bryan Woo’s early offering in the first and lined it into the left center seats for his 26th home run, a quick jolt that set the tone for a crisp, pitcher-forward game. The M’s edged the A’s 3-2 at T Mobile Field in Seattle.
Luis Morales met the moment early, rolling through the Mariners order with a mix of ground balls and harmless air, helped by clean reads from Lawrence Butler in center and JJ Bleday in right. Through four innings the Green and Gold carried a 1-0 lead that felt sturdy, the kind of narrow edge that rewards patience and punishes mistakes.
Seattle’s answer arrived in the fifth in the form of a veteran’s swing. Eugenio Suárez turned on a pitch and sent a liner over the left field wall for his 40th, a no-nonsense shot that reset the scoreboard and the mood. Morales limited the damage there, but Woo matched him and then some.
The Mariners right-hander ran seven innings with only the early Rooker blast on his ledger, living at the knees and inducing a string of routine outs as the middle innings tilted toward the home dugout. Oakland-area memories have taught A’s fans not to trust one-run cushions on the road, and the seventh confirmed the suspicion.
After Morales handed things to Elvis Alvarado, Julio Rodríguez bounced out to first and then the gates opened. Josh Naylor got a heater he could lift and sent his 16th out to right center for a 2-1 Seattle lead. Two batters later Jorge Polanco rode a fly ball to almost the same neighborhood for his 19th, and the inning that began with a tie ended with the Mariners up 3-1.
The A’s flirted with a counterpunch in the top half thanks to an error by second baseman Cole Young that put Tyler Soderstrom aboard, but a deep fly from Jacob Wilson died in center and Butler’s hard grounder turned into a 4-6-3 double play, the kind of two-step that drains a dugout.
Still, the A’s kept pressing. In the eighth, with two outs, Brett Harris gave way to pinch hitter Carlos Cortes, who sliced a sharp double into right to jolt the visitors, only for Gabe Speier to enter and end it with a strikeout. Justin Sterner returned a steady bottom of the eighth, aided by a successful challenge that flipped an out-call at first into a single for J.P. Crawford, only for Tyler Soderstrom to gun Crawford down trying for second. That throw mattered more than it looked in the moment because it kept the deficit at two and set the stage for a final act that had real weight.
Andrés Muñoz took the ball for the ninth, the building braced for velocity, and the A’s refused to blink. Shea Langeliers struck out to start the inning, but Rooker lined a single to left to restart the heartbeat. Soderstrom followed with a ground-ball single to left, Rooker eased into second, and the game tilted. Wilson then shot a grounder up the middle for another single, Rooker scored, and manager Mark Kotsay sent in Colby Thomas to run.
Butler showed patience and drew a walk to load the bases, one out, the tying run ninety feet away and the go-ahead run on second against Seattle’s closer. Darell Hernaiz lifted a fly to center that did not travel far enough to challenge Rodríguez, and Muñoz finally slammed the door with a strikeout of Bleday, his last fastball good enough to finish a 3-2 Mariners win that felt like it travelled the long way around to get there.
For the Sacramento A’s, the night carried both the promise and the frustration that define close losses on the road. Rooker’s bat remains a force, Soderstrom stacked quality at-bats, and Wilson delivered under pressure. Morales gave them the shape of a win through five and change, but two swings in the seventh turned the ledger. Woo earned the quiet star, scattering traffic and refusing to yield anything after the first inning. Seattle’s bullpen teased the ninth with doubt and then survived it, which is usually the difference between a good flight home and replaying every pitch while the cabin lights dim.
The A’s will point to the little margins. A double play in the seventh stopped a budding answer. A routine fly in the ninth kept a runner anchored at third. Three swings defined Seattle’s offense, and the final one belonged to Muñoz with the game on the line. It was a narrow loss and a useful snapshot of why margins matter, not a moral victory, just a reminder that the road from one run up to one run short can be a brutal statement in the show.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
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.
Athletics’ Lawrence Butler (4) celebrates after hitting a three-run double during the second inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
A’s baseball podcast with Lincoln Juarez:
#1 The A’s swept the Twins Thursday afternoon in Minneapolis and got their second consecutive series win. Tyler Soderstrom stole the show going 4-for-4.
#2 The A’s outscored the Twins 18-8 in the series and the offense has stayed hot. Yet again we see them putting up big numbers.
#3 Nick Kurtz went 2-for-4 Thursday with a homer. We know how much you love to talk about him, good to see him still swinging the bat well.
#4 The A’s have the 14th best record since the All-Star break at 18-13. What’s been the key to the team’s success the last month?
#5 Looking ahead, the A’s match up against the Mariners for three games this Friday and the weekend, it seems like a good opportunity for them to play spoiler. The A’s will start RHP Luis Morales (1-0 ERA 1.86) the M’s have not announced a starter as of yet.
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.
When the New York Yankees Aaron Judge was a free agent he passed on the San Francisco Giants and re upped with the Yankees shortly there after. (AP News photo)
Giants: Looking for the next Barry Bonds?
That’s Amaury News and Commentary
By Amaury Pi-González
Over the last few years, the San Francisco Giants have attempted to sign some of the game’s biggest superstars, players who will truly bring fans to Oracle Park and, most importantly, lead the team to another World Series. No disrespect to Dominican-born Rafael Devers, who was acquired in a midseason trade from the Boston Red Sox; he is a very good player, but he is not in the same category as the ones you will see listed below.
Everybody will probably agree that the San Francisco Giants haven’t had a great player since Barry Bonds, a real superstar, who retired in 2007 after 22 years in the Major Leagues. No disrespect to Buster Posey, as good as he was, possibly Hall of Famer, but Bonds was in a much higher category of talent. As a business, baseball teams like to contract big stars.
The Giants signed future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander. It is good to have that talent; however, this should be Verlander’s last season with the Giants, and maybe his last season, period.
Verlander’s signing might have sold more tickets, because everybody wants to see successful players. However, with the Giants to this day, Justin Verlander is 1-10 with a 4.64 earned run average. Here is something that might surprise you: in World Series games, Verlander has a record of 1 win and 6 losses with a 4.64 earned run average.
Looking for that one big star, the Giants tried to sign these.
1-Aaron Judge.(No chance) He chose to stay with the Yankees, the team he had played for throughout his career. While the Giants made a strong offer, potentially matching the Padres’ offer of 10 years, $400 million, Judge’s preference was to remain in New York. Who can blame him?
The Yankees are the home of the sluggers and home to 27 World Series titles. When the Giants were trying to bring him to the Bay Area, I said it was never going to happen. He is a New York Yankee in the tradition of the great players like Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, Maris, Berra, Jeter, etc. There was no reason he was coming to San Francisco (even though he was born 95 miles from San Francisco in Linden). California. However, in baseball and business, New York is New York.
2-Shohei Ohtani (No chance) The Giants said they were offering him a contract that was very similar to, if not identical to, the one he ultimately signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers (In the $700s million range). President of baseball operations, Farhan Zaidi, confirmed that they met with Ohtani and his representatives and were willing to match the Dodgers’ offer, including the deferred money, according to MLB.com.
Ultimately, Ohtani chose to sign with the Dodgers. Why? Said he preferred LA to SF. Note: ESPN reported that the Giants’ offer was identical to the one made by the Dodgers. Ohtani went Hollywood. I first met him and interviewed Ohtani “Showtime” as a rookie with the LA Angels in 2018 at Anaheim. Very smart and pleasant player.
3-Carlos Correa (Not meant to be). He had a deal with the Giants in place for a 13-year, $350 million contract, but it fell through due to concerns about a surgically repaired ankle, and the Giants stated that he had failed his physical.
However, the Correa story continued in 2025, as he had played for the Minnesota Twins and was currently with the Houston Astros, whom he had played for from 2012 to 2015, before joining the Twins. Carlos Correa, who is beloved in Houston, hit a home run in his first at-bat with the Houston Astros just days after being traded from Minnesota.
This Puerto Rican story is as long as his full legal name, which is Carlos Javier Correa Oppenheimer Jr., and yes, he has seen the movie.
4-Juan Soto (Never close) There were rumors that the Giants were interested in Juan Soto, a free agent, but they did not make a strong push for him. Although all roads ended with a group of 10 different teams, Juan Soto landed in the Big Apple, and the New York Mets, secured him with a record-breaking contract for 15 years and $765 million, although he was jumping like a kangaroo from team to team, 2022-23 Padres and 2024 Yankees, he broke the Piñata with the Mets, where he is playing today, and will probably see him in the Playoffs. These Giants.
In 2025, they were not picked to win the NL West, but nobody expected them to be in 4th place at this time of the year. Buster Posey and company have a lot of work to do to improve this team. The mid-season acquisition of Rafael Devers did not change the chemistry of that lineup, and Willy Adames is having a better second half, but the team is not. There are only three ways you can find a superstar.
1-You develop him..
2-You trade for him.
3-You sign him as a Free Agent. Everybody will probably agree that the San Francisco Giants haven’t had a great player since Barry Bonds, who retired in 2007 after 22 years in the Major Leagues. The Giants initially drafted Barry Bonds out of high school in 1982 at Junípero Serra High in San Mateo (the same school as Tom Brady), but the Giants did not sign him due to a contract dispute over $5,000.
Bonds went on to play college ball at Arizona State University, hitting .347 with 45 home runs and 175 RBI. In 1984, he batted .360 and stole 30 bases. In 1985, hit 23 home runs with 66 RBI and a .368 average. That year, Bonds was a Sporting News All-American.
He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1992, and in 1993, the Giants signed him as a free agent to a record-breaking six-year, $43.75 million contract. The rest is history. For the Giants today, 2025 it’s “Wait ‘Till Next Year”. Probably the most used phrase for a bunch of teams around mid-August and September.
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.
While in the Bay Area, great food and great prices. 998cuba.com
Minnesota Twins Kody Clemens (18) slid into the tag out by Sacramento A’s catcher Willie MacIver (left) in the bottom of the fourth inning at Target Field in Minneapolis on Thu Aug 21, 2025 (AP News photo)
Rookies and Redemption Fuel Sacramento in 8-3 Rout Over Minnesota
By Mauricio Segura
In a ballpark where the Twins typically dance to their own beat, it was the Sacramento Athletics who brought the bass drum and snare roll to Target Field Wednesday afternoon, hammering Minnesota 8–3 in a statement win defined by clutch hitting, patient at-bats, and a power display from a blossoming rookie.
Sacramento’s explosive second inning looked like something out of a hitting clinic, complete with base-to-base fundamentals and just enough chaos to unsettle starter José Ureña. After a one-out hit-by-pitch and a couple of timely singles, the Athletics loaded the bases and broke the game open.
Nick Kurtz, the young first baseman showing flashes of future All-Star credentials, drew a composed walk to push runners around. Then Lawrence Butler doubled home three, Brent Rooker doubled home another, and by the time the dust settled, it was 6–0 Green and Gold with the home crowd stunned into silence.
Ureña never found his footing again. His second inning unraveling included a wild pitch, two more walks, and a barrage of hard contact that left Minnesota scrambling for answers. He lasted only five innings, tagged for six earned runs.
His opposition, Jack Perkins, pitched four and two-thirds innings of gritty baseball. While he flirted with danger in the fourth when the Twins loaded the bases with no outs, a bizarre force-out at home and alert defense limited the damage to just two runs.
Despite a late rally attempt, Minnesota never closed the gap to within striking distance. Sacramento’s bats kept breathing in the middle innings. Kurtz, making good on his second-inning RBI walk, delivered a solo shot to dead center in the sixth off reliever Michael Tonkin.
It was Kurtz’s 26th homer of the season and a no-doubt blast that seemed to symbolize the Athletics’ intent: a team in rebuild mode that’s no longer waiting around to be competitive.
Tyler Soderstrom, who manned left field, also had himself a day at the plate, collecting three hits including a double and two sharply-hit singles. He reached base four times, consistently applying pressure and pushing the pace offensively. It’s becoming more apparent that Soderstrom, still only 23, is growing into the kind of versatile player Sacramento can lean on both now and in the years ahead.
Ben Bowden, Osvaldo Bido, and the rest of Sacramento’s bullpen picked up where Perkins left off. After allowing a run in the fourth, they shut the door across the next five frames, giving up just three hits combined. Minnesota managed a final gasp in the ninth when Royce Lewis doubled in Kody Clemens, but it was far too little too late.
While Butler’s bases-clearing double was the highlight reel moment, Sacramento’s offense functioned like a well-tuned orchestra. Nine hits scattered across the lineup. Seven different players reached base. And the A’s demonstrated not just power but a patient eye, drawing five walks to Minnesota’s four.
Max Schuemann added an RBI single in the seventh to make it 8–2, while catcher Willie MacIver, despite finishing hitless, contributed behind the plate with steady game-calling and a throw that cut down a runner at home in the fourth.
Minnesota’s promising young trio of Buxton, Larnach, and Lee were mostly neutralized. Buxton went 0-for-4, lining out twice to center fielder Lawrence Butler who covered a lot of ground and made multiple strong reads. Larnach did double in the fourth and score, but it wasn’t enough to change the momentum. Meanwhile, James Outman struck out three times in the loss and left runners stranded in key moments.
Managerial decisions, particularly the timing of Minnesota’s pitching changes, could be questioned in hindsight. Ureña was allowed to face one batter too many during Sacramento’s second-inning barrage, and by the time Tonkin entered in the sixth, the game was largely out of reach.
It was a win that reminded fans and pundits alike that the Athletics, though relocated and retooled, aren’t merely a placeholder franchise. They’re young, they’re scrappy, and as they proved Wednesday, they’re capable of outplaying anyone when things click. With a new identity in Sacramento and a clubhouse built on grit, the Green and Gold might just be laying the groundwork for something special.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
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.
Athletics catcher Shea Langeliers (23) celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run in the 10th inning of a baseball game in Minneapolis, Minn., on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP)(ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sacramento A’s podcast Jeremiah Salmonson:
#1 The Sacramento A’s Shea Langeliers belted his 28 home run of the season and the A’s defeated the Minnesota Twins 4-2 at Target Field on Wednesday night.
#2 Langeliers home run was a 401 foot rocket to right center that came off Twins pitcher Genesis Cabrera who dropped his record to 0-1. Ghost runner Nick Kurtz scored ahead of Langeliers.
#3 The A’s get a two run win but scored only once in nine tries with runners in scoring position.
#4 Langeliers hitting 16 of home runs out of 28 home runs in the second half since All Star break.
#5 Sacramento A’s RHP Jack Perkins (2-2, 4.28 ERA) will start for the Athletics on Thursday opposite the Minnesota Twins RHP José Ureña (0-1, 4.06).
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.
Athletics’ catcher Shea Langeliers (23) tags out Minnesota Twins’ James Outman (43) in the third inning of a baseball game at Target Field in Minneapolis, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Langeliers Powers Athletics Past Twins in Extra-Inning Thriller
By Mauricio Segura
The Sacramento Athletics had to sweat it out under the Minnesota lights, but a timely swing from Shea Langeliers ensured the Green and Gold walked away with another road victory.
The game featured stellar pitching, clutch defensive plays, and more than a few wasted chances, it was Langeliers’ bat that made the ultimate difference, blasting a two-run homer in the tenth inning to seal a 4-2 win over the Twins at Target Field on Tuesday night.
The evening started quietly, almost deceptively so. Sacramento went down in order in the top of the first as Minnesota starter Bailey Ober looked sharp, but rookie Tyler Soderstrom quickly disrupted that narrative in the second. He ripped a leadoff double to center, then came around to score on Darell Hernaiz’s sacrifice fly. The early run staked the Athletics to a 1-0 lead and gave starter J.T. Ginn a cushion to work with.
Ginn, who has shown flashes of dominance in his young career, kept the Twins at bay through the first two innings, striking out three and relying on his defense to handle sharp grounders. He wasn’t overpowering, but he was efficient, forcing Minnesota into easy outs while allowing his teammates time to add on.
That insurance came in the fourth when Soderstrom struck again, launching a solo homer to dead center to make it 2-0. For a moment, it seemed the Athletics had the right formula: score just enough and let their arms do the rest.
The Twins, though, found their spark in the fifth. James Outman doubled, and with two outs, Trevor Larnach lined a single to left that plated Minnesota’s first run. Two batters later, Brooks Lee laced another double to tie things up at 2-2. The inning marked the end of Ginn’s night, as manager Mark Kotsay turned to the bullpen to preserve the tie.
From that point, the game became a battle of nerves and relievers. Sacramento had its chances, particularly in the eighth when a pinch-hit single from Carlos Cortes and a passed ball put the go-ahead run in scoring position.
But with the bases loaded, Colby Thomas went down swinging to strand the rally. Minnesota threatened in its half of the frame, but Colby Thomas redeemed himself with a pair of running catches in center that kept the score knotted.
Sacramento again seemed poised to break through in the ninth when Hernaiz doubled to lead off, only to watch the next three hitters go down meekly. The Twins had their moment too, putting runners on the corners with two outs, but reliever Michael Kelly induced a deep fly ball from Austin Martin that died just shy of the wall in right. Both sides had flirted with a win in regulation, but neither could close it out.
That set the stage for Langeliers in the tenth. With Nick Kurtz placed at second under extra-inning rules, Langeliers wasted no time. On a 1-0 pitch from Minnesota reliever Brooks Kriske, the catcher unleashed a towering drive to right-center, his 28th homer of the season.
The Athletics dugout erupted as the ball cleared the wall, a mix of relief and celebration, knowing they had finally landed the decisive blow. The Green and Gold added no further damage, but the 4-2 lead was all they needed.
Tyler Ferguson entered for the bottom half, inheriting the placed runner at second. The Twins tried to rally, moving Austin Martin to third on a lineout, but Ferguson buckled down. He coaxed a pop-up from Royce Lewis, issued a walk, and then slammed the door with a routine groundout to second to end the contest.
Soderstrom and Langeliers carried the bats, combining for three extra-base hits, three runs scored, and all four RBIs. On the pitching side, the Athletics bullpen was resilient, stringing together 5.1 shutout innings after Ginn exited. Sean Newcomb, Elvis Alvarado, Hogan Harris, Kelly, and Ferguson all contributed to silencing a Minnesota lineup that had multiple opportunities but failed to deliver the knockout punch.
For Sacramento, the win was more than just another tally in the standings. It was a showcase of timely hitting, defensive grit, and bullpen depth, the kind of ingredients any contender needs in late summer.
While the Athletics still have plenty of work to do in their push to remain relevant, nights like this are the kind that build confidence. Minnesota, meanwhile, will be left sulking its missed chances, going 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and leaving nine men on base.
When the dust settled, it was Langeliers’ swing that stood above the rest, a reminder that sometimes one big hit is enough to tilt an entire game. For the Athletics, it came at just the right time.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
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.
Sacramento A’s Shea Langeliers (23) runs the bases after hitting his 27th home run against the Minnesota Twins in the top of the third inning at Target Field in Minneapolis on Tue Aug 19, 2025 (AP News photo)
The Athletics danced into Minneapolis with a 6–3 victory over the Minnesota Twins at Target Field Tuesday night at Target Field. The win marked the A’s 57th of the season, extending a glimmer of hope amid a broadly disappointing season.
Shea Langeliers delivered a two run homer in the third inning, his 27th of the season, which not only handed Sacramento the lead but also further fueled his mammoth post–All-Star Break surge that is turning heads across the league.
Meanwhile, Tyler Soderstrom proved his bat remains red hot, stretching his hitting streak to 17 straight games with a run scored on Brett Harris’s sacrifice fly in the fourth. Oakland’s offense continued to roll in the fourth, capitalizing on an error and sustained pressure.
Harris, Luis Urías, and Nick Kurtz each delivered key RBIs, building a commanding 5–1 cushion and showcasing the depth and resilience of this squad. Though the Twins responded with solo homers from Brooks Lee and Ryan Jeffers, trimming the deficit to 5–3, the Athletics buried the rally in the sixth when Harris came through again with another RBI single.
Though the spotlight shone on the offense, lefty Jacob Lopez earned his share of applause too, working six innings of four hit, two earned run ball, striking out eight, and commandeering the win (now 7–6 on the season). He handed the game over to the bullpen, where Justin Sterner tossed two scoreless innings and Hogan Harris closed the door with his first career save, completing a perfect ninth.
For the Twins, Joe Ryan suffered a harsh night, surrendering five runs (two earned) over four innings and seeing his record slip to 12–6. Even so, contributors like Wallner, Lee, Jeffers, and base running threats kept the contest alive, though ultimately the comeback fell short.
What began as a routine summer road game morphed into a tight and electrifying midweek duel. The A’s now turn their attention to game two of the series, set for Wednesday, with rookie right hander JT Ginn taking the mound for the A’s and Bailey Ober going for Minnesota.
Ginn has battled through recent struggles, 12 earned runs over his last 11 and two thirds innings, but the A’s faithful will be hoping Tuesday night’s win serves as a pivot point for both the rookie and the team.
All told, what makes this victory so fun and revealing for fans is how it encapsulates everything about the 2025 Athletics: youthful zeal, flashes of pop, gritty pitching, and a bullpen that can lock things down on the road.
A’s and Twins continue the series on Wednesday at 4:40pm PT first pitch at Target Field in Minneapolis. Starting pitcher for the A’s JT Ginn (2-5 ERA 5.04) for the Twins Bailey Ober (5-7 ERA 5.17).
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.
Sacramento A’s Shea Langeliers slugs his second of three home runs against the Washington Nationals in the top of the fifth inning on Tue Aug 5, 2025 at Nationals Park in DC. Langeliers leads the A’s in home runs with 26. The A’s opened a six game road trip on Tue Aug 19, 2025. (AP News photo)
A’s Best of Last Place Teams
That’s Amaury News and Commentary
By Amaury Pi Gonzalez
The objective is to win, but there can only be one champion. When all is settled, only one of 30 will get the trophy. In the Big Leagues, unlike Little Leagues, there is no “participation” award, and the closest thing to that is the Wild Card, which has been in place since 1995.
You always have the elite teams, such as the Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, and a few others, ‘the regular suspects’, but what about if we start from the bottom and see what’s happening there, with under 40 games left for most teams?
That could be interesting, and these are the ones at the bottom. The Cellar. These are the teams that, if the season ended today, would finish last in each of the six divisions. Orioles, White Sox, Athletics, Pirates, Nationals, Rockies.
In this group of non-contenders, the Rockies and White Sox have the best chance of reaching the dreaded 100 games lost. By the way, the White Sox established the new record for most games lost with 121 last season.
The Athletics and the Orioles had been evenly matched for most of the season. However, there is a big difference here, while the O’s were expected ‘in some way’ to be contenders, maybe as a wild card, nobody picked the A’s to do much, but to try to survive another year, they are the most criticized franchise in recent memory (thanks to his owner, who was brutally booed by fans at their home park a few days ago) they were expected to finish, like last season out of the cellar.
I could analyze this until the cows come home, but I will make it easier. Oh yes, there is another difference between the O’s and the A’s, the Orioles’ payroll is $154 million, while the Athletics is $77 million. The A’s lineup is a young and aggressive one.
The first in MLB this year to have three guys with 25 home runs: Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, and the Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz. If the A’s retain the same nucleus of players and can improve their pitching from starters to closer (they traded one of the best in Mason Miller), and perhaps spend a little money??? In the off-season, they could be very interesting in 2026, possibly challenging for a wild card.
For the Orioles, it is even more interesting; they play in a tough division with the Jays, Rays, Yanks, and Red Sox, and it could be much more difficult to be relevant next season.
However, there are always trade possibilities; they have already traded veteran Cedric Mullins to the contending Mets, and I expect the Orioles to be busy in the trade and free agent markets this winter. Players on last-place teams often struggle to stay motivated when playoff hopes are lost and fan energy is low, highlighting the importance of professionalism.
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.
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.
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