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A’s Blank Rangers On Opening Day

Published

10 years ago

April 6, 2015

Oakland, CA – Blame it on the two new video boards or the swift “willing and dealing” by General Manager Billy Bean this offseason. The A’s overcame an obstacle that had been their achilles heel for the last ten years. Three Oakland managers Ken Macha, Bob Geren and Bob Melvin have fallen victim to losing on Opening Day.

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“This will be my fourth opening day and we haven’t won one yet,” said Melvin. “It does bother me. You really want to enjoy and embrace opening day but I really would like to get this losing streak out of the way”

The ten-year losing skid (on Opening Day) ended tonight, in fact, not only did the A’s shutout the Texas Rangers 8-0. Sonny Gray was a gem on the mound pitching a no-hitter through eight innings. He allowed on hit to Ryan Rua who leadoff the eighth with a single to right field. The crowd rose to their feet chanting “Sonny, Sonny, Sonny” and gave him a standing ovation when he walked off the mound.

“That was a big monkey we needed to get off our back,” Melvin explained. And to do it in the fashion we did tonight was terrific. It’s really nice to get that win.”

Gray finished the night with one walk and struck out three. His pitch count was at 98. One mistake, leaving a fastball over the plate a little too long was the deciding factor of Rua breaking up his “no-no”. But Gray wouldn’t change a thing. He knew he was in a zone and that one pitch he wouldn’t take back.

“There in the eighth, I didn’t feel like I made a bad pitch,” said Gray. “I was maybe a little tired, left a few pitches up, but the hit, he put a great swing on it and hit he ball into right field. But I wouldn’t take that pitch back.”

“He was throwing all his pitches,” Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre said. “He was commanding his fastball and throwing his pitches for strikes. He pitched great game.”

A team full of new faces did not disappoint. Ben Zobrist recorded his first home run as an Athletic in the first. He followed Sam Fuld’s one-out triple with a two-run shot to left field giving Oakland a 2-0 lead. The A’s added two more runs to pull away from the Rangers in the fourth. And never looked back as the hits kept coming.

“For the fans that maybe didn’t know how well we were in Spring Training,” Zobrist said. “They were able to see what this team’s capable of. The game is a lot harder than we made it look tonight.”

Ike Davis leadoff the fourth with a free pass. Stephen Vogt doubled to left field moving Davis to third. Marcus Semien drove in Davis on a bloop single to center field making it a 3-0 game. Then on a wild pitch, Vogt scored. In the seventh, Vogt hit a three-run homer to extend Oakland’s lead 7-0. Billy Butler scored in Eric Sogard in the eight making it a 8-0 game.

For years the A’s needed a power hitter but from the looks of tonight’s game the team is well on their way to have a success season. The defense was superb keeping Texas frustrated throughout the game. A crucial call in the fifth didn’t result in scoring in any runs but kept the momentum login of Oakland.

Butler grounded into a force out to shortstop Elvis Andrus to second baseman Rougned Odor. Fuld slid into second and was tagged out by Odor who never had the ball to tag him out. The A’s challenged the call and it was overturned. The result a Fielder’ Choice, E-6. Pitcher Anthony Bass walked Davis, loading the bases with one out. But Vogt struck out stranding all three.

“I think we have more consistent power throughout our lineup,” said Vogt. “We may not have a 30-home run guy like we’ve had in the last couple of years. You’re going to miss that kind of power. That’s a special power. But up and down the lineup, you’re going to see guys hunting for 10 or 15 home runs.”

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Related Topics:Ben Zobrist Sonny Gray Stephen Vogt

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Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

Published

9 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Bay Area

Glydways Breaking Ground on 14-Acre Demonstration Facility at Hilltop Mall

Glydways has been testing its technology at CCTA’s GoMentum Station in Concord for several years. The company plans to install an ambitious 28-mile Autonomous Transit Network in East Contra Costa County. The new Richmond facility will be strategically positioned near that project, according to Glydways.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.

The Richmond Standard

Glydways, developer of microtransit systems using autonomous, small-scale vehicles, is breaking ground on a 14-acre Development and Demonstration Facility at the former Hilltop Mall property in Richmond, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) reported on social media.

Glydways, which released a statement announcing the project Monday, is using the site while the mall property undergoes a larger redevelopment.

“In the interim, Glydways will use a portion of the property to showcase its technology and conduct safety and reliability testing,” the company said.

The new Richmond development hub will include “over a mile of dedicated test track, enabling Glydways to refine its solutions in a controlled environment while simulating real-world conditions,” the company said.

Visitors to the facility will be able to experience on-demand travel, explore the control center and visit a showroom featuring virtual reality demonstrations of Glydways projects worldwide.

The hub will also house a 13,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility to service the growing fleet of Glydcars.

“With this new facility [at the former Hilltop Mall property], we’re giving the public a glimpse of the future, where people can experience ultra-quiet, on-demand transit—just like hailing a rideshare, but with the reliability and affordability of public transit,” said Tim Haile, executive director of CCTA.

Janet Galvez, vice president and investment officer at Prologis, owner of the Hilltop Mall property, said her company is “thrilled” to provide space for Glydways and is continuing to work with the city on future redevelopment plans for the broader mall property.

Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl added that Glydways’ presence “will not only help test new transit solutions but also activate the former Mall site while preparation and finalization of the Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan is underway.

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Alameda County

Last City Council Meeting of the Year Ends on Sour Note with Big Budget Cuts

In a five to one vote, with Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Janani Ramachandran excused, the council passed a plan aimed at balancing the $130 million deficit the city is facing. Noel Gallo voted against the plan, previously citing concerns over public safety cuts, while Nikki Fortunato-Bas, Treva Reid, Rebecca Kaplan, Kevin Jenkins, and Dan Kalb voted in agreement with the plan.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oakland City Council voted on a plan to balance the $130 million deficit at their last regular meeting of 2024. The plan reduces police spending by $25 million, temporarily closes two fire stations, and guts the cultural arts programs. iStock photo.

By Magaly Muñoz

In the last lengthy Tuesday meeting of the Oakland City Council for 2024, residents expressed strong opposition to the much needed budget cuts before a change in leadership was finalized with the certification of election results.

Oakland police and fire departments, the ambassador program, and city arts and culture will all see significant cuts over the course of two phases.

Phase 1 will eliminate two police academies, brown out two fire stations, eliminate the ambassador program, and reduce police overtime by nearly $25 million. These, with several other cuts across departments, aim to save the city $60 million. In addition, the council simultaneously approved to transfer restricted funds into its general purpose fund, amounting to over $40 million.

Phase 2 includes additional fire station brownouts and the elimination of 91 jobs, aiming to recover almost $16 million in order to balance the rest of the budget.

Several organizations and residents spoke out at the meeting in hopes of swaying the council to not make cuts to their programs.

East Oakland Senior Center volunteers and members, and homeless advocates, filled the plaza just outside of City Hall with rallies to show their disapproval of the new budget plan. Senior residents told the council to “remember that you’ll get old too” and that disturbing their resources will only bring problems for an already struggling community.

While city staff announced that there would not be complete cuts to senior center facilities, there would be significant reductions to staff and possibly inter-program services down the line.

Exiting council member and interim mayor Bas told the public that she is still hopeful that the one-time $125 million Coliseum sale deal will proceed in the near future so that the city would not have to continue with drastic cuts. The deal was intended to save the city for fiscal year 2024-25, but a hold up at the county level has paused any progress and therefore millions of dollars in funds Oakland desperately needs.

The Coliseum sale has been a contentious one. Residents and city leaders were originally against using the deal as a way to balance the budget, citing doubts about the sellers, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group’s (AASEG), ability to complete the deal. Council members Reid, Ramachandran, and Gallo have called several emergency meetings to understand where the first installments of the sale are, with little to no answers.

Bas added that as the new Alameda County Supervisor for D5, a position she starts in a few weeks, she will do everything in her power to push the Coliseum sale along.

The city is also considering a sales tax measure to put on the special election ballot on April 15, 2025, which will also serve as an election to fill the now vacant D2 and mayor positions. The tax increase would raise approximately $29 million annually for Oakland, allowing the city to gain much-needed revenue for the next two-year budget.

The council will discuss the possible sales tax measure on January 9.