{"id":267815,"date":"2026-04-14T19:55:26","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T19:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/267815\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T19:55:26","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T19:55:26","slug":"my-first-as-game-in-west-sacramento","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/267815\/","title":{"rendered":"My First A\u2019s Game in West Sacramento"},"content":{"rendered":"

Seeing them, as well as the Warriors and Raiders leave Oakland, I gave up on supporting pro teams as a whole. I focused on individual players, because I still love sports, especially baseball. And when someone is good, I enjoy watching.<\/p>\n

Now the thing is, the Athletics have a bunch of good young ballplayers. It\u2019s early in the 162-game campaign, but they\u2019re near top of their division.<\/p>\n

After a 5-1 road trip, where they beat the Yankees two out of three and swept the Mets, the team returned to the West Coast for a few games. And on Monday night, right before first pitch, the tickets dropped to $11. It was time to get a taste of A\u2019s baseball, West Sacramento style.<\/p>\n

As we headed to the game, my daughter asked if Stomper<\/a> was going to be there. Not only was the A\u2019s mascot, a beloved gray pachyderm, dancing on top of the dugout during the game, there was a lot to be excited about inside the dugout too.<\/p>\n

Reigning unanimous American League Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz is back after having a monster 2025 campaign, hitting 36 home runs.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s joined by former All Star outfielder Brent Rooker, standout shortstop Max Muncy and catcher Shea Langeliers. There\u2019s Jacob Wilson who was drafted sixth overall in 2023, and Tyler Soderstrom, who was drafted straight out of high school in 2020.<\/p>\n

Lawrence Butler made a name for himself last year with his flashy glove work<\/a> (and his literally flashy multicolored glove). And just over a month ago A\u2019s infielder Darell Hern\u00e1iz hit an epic walk-off home run<\/a> while playing for team Puerto Rico against Panama in the World Baseball Classic.<\/p>\n

Along with this list of young talent, the A\u2019s also recently debuted some new threads.<\/p>\n

Despite only planning to stay in Sacramento until they play the 2028 season in their new home in Las Vegas<\/a>, this year the team showed love to the state capital by debuting their Sacramento gold jerseys<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I snickered as I walked past the new hats and uniforms on display at the team\u2019s store. But I took note of the upcoming promotional giveaways<\/a>: a Nick Kurtz bobble head, a Stomper plush hat, a Hello Kitty A\u2019s figurine and even a miniature A\u2019s-themed Star Wars Grogu.<\/p>\n

Not bad.<\/p>\n

\"AMy daughter holds up an official Major League Baseball at an A\u2019s game in West Sacramento. (Pendarvis Harshaw)<\/p>\n

As the sun set over West Sacramento on a moderate April evening, my daughter and I hung out on the grassy knoll in the back of right field. Stains permeated her jeans; you can\u2019t keep a nine-year-old from rolling down a grassy hill.<\/p>\n

She grew tired of me explaining balls and strikes, and we pivoted to playing on the slide and jungle gym at the park behind the outfield. The baseball game was like an excuse for her to play outside past her bedtime on a school night. I just wish they had a TV monitor in the play area.<\/p>\n

Not that I was fully invested \u2014 it wasn\u2019t a competitive game. The former Philadelphia, Kansas City and Oakland Athletics, who now play in West Sacramento (and will soon play in Las Vegas), lost 8-1 to the Texas Rangers.<\/p>\n

The highlight of the night: we left with a game ball.<\/p>\n

A reliever in the bullpen tossed it to my daughter before the game. One benefit of the quaint ballpark is that the players are a lot more accessible; foul balls and home runs are easier to grab too.<\/p>\n

We left after singing \u201cTake Me Out To The Ballgame\u201d during the seventh-inning stretch and walked back across Capitol Avenue to my parking spot in a nearby neighborhood.<\/p>\n