Tag: That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Bruce Maxwell with the Acereros de Mexico

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Photo credit: nbcsports.com

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

Ex-Oakland Athletics catcher Bruce Maxwell is playing baseball with the Acereros de Monclova (Steelers) in Mexico. Maxwell hopes that he will be noticed by a major league scout and a return to the major leagues.

In 2017, Maxwell took a knee during the National Anthem in Oakland. To this day, he is the only major league player to do so, but things got more complicated for the catcher when he was later was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Eventually, the A’s let him go after the 2018 season, a season where they won 97 games and made it to the one-game wild card playoff against the New York Yankees.

During his three years in Oakland (2016-18), Maxwell played in 127 games, recorded a combined .240 batting average, five home runs and 42 runs batted in. The A’s obviously expected more productivity. The German-born catcher is looking for another opportunity and a fresh start. I think wverybody deserves a second chance since it is not like today’s major leagues are super-rich with great catchers. The Philadelphia Phillies’ J.T Realmuto is in his prime, while the St. Louis Cardinals’ Yaider Molina and the San Francisco Giants’ Buster Posey are nearing the end of their respective careers.

Maxwell is 28 years old. He is working in Mexico to impress a major league team. I hope he succeed and can return to play for one of the 30 teams in the majors.

As of today, Maxwell’s club Monclova is 14-7 for third place in the Norte (North) Division and two games behind Tijuana.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Venezuelan MLB Players Are Moving Families to the US

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Photo credit: @VOANews

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

According to the United Nations’ estimate, more than three million Venezuelans have left Venezuela. Most of them left by foot into neighboring Colombia. Nicolas Maduro, the socialist dictator of Venezuela and disciple of Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro, has destroyed the economy of what was once the richest country in Latin America. Venezuela was one of the world’s top oil producers. Venezuela’s current exodus is the biggest in the world at this time. No country has lost more people during the last two years than Venezuela.

Since last season, I have spoken to numerous Venezuelan-born MLB players. They are second to Dominican Republic-born players as of today — as far as Latin American-born players playing in the big leagues goes. The majority of them, especially the ones established as stars, could not take the risk of coming to the US to play for their teams and leave their families behind. It is way too risky, especially in the case of MLB players who everybody knows makes millions of dollars. They expose their families to kidnapping for money and violence against women and children of these families. Because of the untenable situation, and the internet, which is read by people all over the world, I did not wanted to disclose the names of these players.

It is a sad state of affairs for the land of Simon Bolivar (El Libertador).

Translation: The Liberator, who fought against Spain for the independence of Venezuela in the 1800’s. To make it simpler, Simon Bolivar was like the Abraham Lincoln of Venezuela. One of Bolivar’s revolutionary ideas was to make all of South America, one big nation like the United States of America, but the United States of South America. It would have to include Brazil, the largest country of South America and Latin America. Obviously, history has it as a great idea, which would have made South America one of the richest and biggest countries in the world, but it never materialized.

Venezuela is the home country of Hall of Fame player Luis Aparicio and many other players that have played in the US. It is the land of great shortstops: Chico Carrasquel, Luis Aparico, Dave Concepcion, Omar Vizquel, Ozzie Guillen and vice versa. In the future, Venezuelan-born playersmimi like Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera will be inducted into the HOF.

We can all hope that Venezuela’s situation can be resolved soon and the country can make a comeback and be a democracy for their people. Like in most of Latin American countries (and dictatorships), the government does not suffer, it is the common people that today in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, which was once a thriving metropolis, have to wait hours in line just to get clean water. The hospitals are in shambles and in need of medicine. Food is scarce and when there is a demonstration against Maduro, it is not a few thousand that take to the streets, but hundreds of thousands.

As of today, some 51 countries in the world, including the US, recognize Juan Guaido, the young opposition leader, as the real Venezuelan President. I pray that there will be no civil war in Venezuela because that would be a bloody one for a great country.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: A’s should sign Gio Gonzalez

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Photo credit: @BrewCrewBall

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

The New York Yankees released Gio Gonzalez from their minor league system and Gonzalez is looking for a new team. The perfect fit for Gonzalez is the Oakland Athletics. The way the weak A’s rotation is these days, Gonzalez would be a welcome addition back in Oakland, and he will probably be their #1 starter as of right now. Some of the injured pitchers will be returning starting with Sean Manea, who is the legitimate #1 starter for the team. But regardless if Manaea returns soon, Gonzalez would fit perfectly on the A’s rotation.

We all know that it all comes down to money, personality and politics of baseball. But Gio loved it in the Bay Area. Gonzalez was the most popular A’s on the A’s Amigos program, talking to young bilingual students as soon as they came to the Oakland Coliseum. There will be absolutely nothing wrong for the A’s to take a flyer and give Gonzalez a one-year deal in Oakland. He is a total asset to the A’s.

If the A’s do not pick him up, he will be picked up very soon by one of the other 29 teams in the majors. Gonzalez will likely be signed within the next 48 hours. I hope the A’s will be that team.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Who are the Giants fooling?

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

The San Francisco Giants front office fear the word “rebuilding”. Maybe they really believed the propaganda that they were going to win a World Series every two years from 2010-14 forever and ever. There is an old saying, “you can’t be half pregnant” and the Giants do not want to say they’re rebuilding and they are talking about trading some players to make the team better this year, but the fans are usually smarter than the front offices.

Take a look at the attendance so far at Oracle Park. People realize the party is over, and the casual fans that were there “for the party, dude!” have disappeared and are now more interested in watching Game of Thrones than Giants baseball. At the end, the fans always have the last word, they pay for the tickets to into the park, pay $12 for a beer, pay $14 for nachos with cheese (and those are cheap snacks!), and not to mention, the souvenirs.

The Giants are not going to contend this season. They should start trading the players that still might have some value like Madison Bumgarner, which I believe will be gone by the trading deadline on July 31. Gut the whole thing, They are not fooling anybody — maybe they’re fooling themselves. They have no power and little speed. They depend exclusively on their pitching. If their pitching gives up four runs, they will lose the game. They are not an exciting team.

As of the conclusion of action Sunday, the Giants have yet to score a run in the first inning during any of their first 23 games of the season. They are 9-14 and heading to Toronto, who are a typical American League East team that can score runs in bunches. There are teams that also have losing records like the Kansas City Royals, but that is a very exciting team with lots of speed and some power.

Still, there are some 140 games for most teams as there is a season still ahead, but the way it is going for the Giants, the next six months might look like six years.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Oakland A’s — Alameda County supervisors vote this Tuesday

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Photo credit: @OTBaseballPhoto

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

OAKLAND — Alameda County Supervisors will vote this Tuesday to negotiate a deal that would sell the Oakland Coliseum to the city of Oakland. This is the first time that Alameda County said they want to sell its share.

The Oakland A’s have shown interest in buying the Coliseum in order to build an entertainment center, business park or maybe building a new park for the A’s at that same location,where they have played since 1968.

For years now, I have been a proponent on the idea the A’s build their new park at the same location of the Coliseum. I know it is not downtown, but it makes sense.

The Mayor of Oakland Libby Schaaf and A’s president Dave Kaval said in early March that the city and the team are seeking to enter into exclusive negotiating agreements to explore both the Coliseum complex and the waterfront Howard Terminal as possible sites for a new baseball stadium. Years ago I remember I attended a meeting of supporters for a new A’s park in Fremont (next to Hwy 680). However, a bunch of Fremont residents resisted the idea, and the A’s plans for Fremont went Adios. Fremont today has the fourth largest population in the Bay Area (235,000) only San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland have larger population than Fremont in the nine-county Bay Area, and in a few years, BART would go all the way to San Jose. Obviously, building the new park at Howard Terminal is a little complicated, compared to the whole idea that if the Supervisors of Alameda County vote in favor of selling to Oakland, it will facilitate Oakland and the A’s to come to an agreement, which they already said they want, and the A’s would build their new home at the Coliseum site. In my opinion, this is the best plan. Although, I know very well the times I have spoken to Kaval that he is definitely focused on Howard Terminal as their #1 choice with the “safe” option that #2 is the same area as the Coliseum. At the end of this story it might prove to be the same location they play today, were the A’s will settle down.

For one, BART (Bay Area Rapid Transistor), who carries thousands of A’s fans to the Coliseum from all-over the Bay Area, would be happy to build right there. They have a station within walking distance from the Coliseum, about a 10-15 minute walk from behind left field right into the park. If the A’s and Oakland can reach a deal after Alameda County sells to the city of Oakland, BART will be very happy as they never been really enthusiastic with the Howard Terminal location. Let’s face it, BART is a big deal for the A’s, the traffic in the Bay Area is getting worse by the minute. We are not LA, but we are getting there, especially with the expansion of people working in Silicon Valley.

The path is now clear for the A’s. If it happens next week, the Alameda Board of Supervisors sell to Oakland.

The Warriors will be gone, the Raiders — only God knows where they will be, but the A’s — once and for all — might be able to control their own future as far as a new home is concerned.

Happy Easter!

Happy Passover!

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Exhausted, old, and living in the past, the Giants better get used to last place

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photo from nbcbayareasports.com: San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy doffs his cap to the fans at the introduction of the Giants at the home opener at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Friday afternoon vs. the Tampa Bay Rays.

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

There is no guarantee sellout at SBC, Pac Bell, AT&T or Oracle Park anymore for San Francisco Giants fans and the dream of another World Series trophy in the near future is just that — a dream.

Looking at the National League West, there is little doubt that even the Padres have much more life, youth and talent than the aging Giants. You want a good surgeon,with lots of experience to operate on you, but in today’s baseball, youth is what is driving the game, not experience. Giants tried to sign Bryce Harper to a short two-year deal, but truth be said,why would he play in San Francisco, in a ballpark that is anything but a hitting paradise, when he could and did, wound up signing a lifelong contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, who play in a park that is truly a power-hitters dream.

Most teams are getting younger and younger, but the Giants obviously never got the memo, they live on days past,not on the present. Giants are anything but exciting. Their hitting is pathetic, they have no speed, and although their pitching is not bad, they feel a tremendous amount of pressure because when they are down early in a game, they can’t come back.

The most exciting player for the Giants is a guy who is getting paid by the Red Sox. Yes, Pablo Sandoval, who has been relegated to the most difficult job in the game, a pinch-hitter, and he seems to deliver, energize and excite the fans. Sandoval has all the passion that this team lacks.

The Giants made lots of mistakes giving huge contracts to players, whose best years were in the past: Buster Posey, Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford, Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto Jeff Samardzija, and Evan Longoria. There lies most of the big money on their payroll. They did this to please their fanbase. Loyalty might be very important in politics, when when it comes to baseball? Winning three World Series in 2010, 2012, and 2014 recruited thousands of new Giants fans, but this is the Bay Area, and unless you are the Warriors, who just win, there comes a time where you cannot please your fans.

The Giants have a great propaganda machine in the Bay Area. When the Oakland A’s were winning titles and the Giants were not, the Giants were the favorite team to cover for the media, but I also remember when I could not give away free tickets for the Giants at Candlestick Park.

I was there to call the first ever game at what is today Oracle Park, back in the year 2000. The park was the talk of town, people were going to see the beautiful new facility, and even people that have never seen a baseball game, I remember a tourist family in SF from Italy that I met as they were walking to the park, just to be there. 10 years later, the people were going to see a championship team. The park is already 19 years old.

I looked at all the rosters in the NL West, and I just could not find a team inferior to the Giants starting this 2019 season.

It is early, yes, and although it might seem like a pessimistic look at these Giants, I am truly a realist, I like to look at the half of the glass that is full, rather than the half that is empty, but at this time, the Giants are empty. The Dodgers will win the division again, and it should not be even close, but the most interesting team in the NL West are the Padres, not only they signed Manny Machado, but Fernando Tatis Jr., the youngest player in the MLB, is truly an exciting player with great talent, an All-Star shortstop in the making. The Padres have lots of young and up and coming players, and I do not think they are a last place team anymore.

The Giants better get used to last place.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for the Oakland A’s on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com