The first season in Sacramento has generally not gone well for the Athletics. The silver linings are limited — the team should finish ahead of the Angels in the standings; Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson might finish 1-2 in the Rookie of the Year race; Shea Langeliers, Brent Rookier, and Kurtz each hit 30+ home runs (only the Yankees have three players with 30+); Tyler Soderstrom appears to be a competent outfielder; and owner John Fisher continues to be booed loudly in his rare appearances at the team’s games.
ESPN’s Tim Keown took an extensive look at all that’s gone wrong this year and what it might mean with the team locked in to play in Sacramento for two more seasons. Attendance and terrible working conditions were just some of the concerns he uncovered.
Sacramento officials and business owners bought into the idea that “scarcity” would help boost demand for A’s tickets at Sutter Health Park, which holds a maximum crowd of just 14,000. Instead, various factors have driven attendance down to lower totals than last year’s, and the team is drawing the fewest fans in the league (even fewer than the Rays, who have spent the season playing in a minor league park with a capacity of just over 11,000).
The team has only had seven sellouts all season: Opening Day, a three-game series against the Yankees on Mother’s Day weekend, and a three-game series against the Giants over Fourth of July weekend.
Season ticket sales for the 2026 season are expected to drop, at least in part because the team routinely ran promotional discount offers that would offer better seats at cheaper prices than most existing season ticket holders had been provided. Those who purchased season tickets are often left selling them at below face value on the secondary market. Many don’t plan to renew.
Attendance for the River Cats, the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate who also call Sutter Health Park home, has dropped 24% from last year, the largest year-to-year change in the minors this season.
Even the gameday staff at Sutter Health Park — who do not directly work for the team — have complained about the way they’ve been treated by the organization, with reports that several have pushed to “trade games on their schedule” to work more River Cats’ contests instead.
Players across the league have routinely been critical of the setup at Sutter Health Park, particularly the location of the visitors’ clubhouse (behind the bullpen and inaccessible from the dugout). The A’s biggest offseason addition, Luis Severino, has been outspoken about the conditions since early in the season.
There’s little reason to think the next two years will be any different. Fisher’s focus is on Las Vegas. Sacramento was always just a stop on the way.
Nationals to hire Paul Toboni to lead front office
Mike Rizzo’s firing in July, just weeks before the draft, left fans in Washington unsure about the organization’s future. Mike DeBartolo was elevated to the general manager role on an interim basis. DeBartolo was among those to interview for the role permanently, but according to reports on Wednesday, the job will go to Paul Toboni.
Toboni, 35, was believed to be the top candidate to be the general manager in Boston under president of baseball operations Craig Breslow. Toboni first joined the Red Sox as an intern ten years ago and has been promoted several times in recent years. Many within the baseball industry have viewed him as an up-and-coming name to watch.
Now, he’ll take the reins in Washington, though it’s unclear what exactly his title will be (POBO or GM). It also remains to be seen if DeBartolo will remain in the organization in some capacity. He’s been with the Nationals since 2012.
There is reason for Nats fans to have some cautious optimism — looking at you, Carol — if Toboni’s track record of drafting players is any indication. During his time leading Boston’s scouting and player development departments, the Red Sox landed Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell, Kyle Teel, Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, Peyton Tolle, and others.
MiLB Prospects of the Year
Shortstops JJ Wetherholt (Cardinals), Konnor Griffin (Pirates), and Kevin McGonigle (Tigers) were named finalists for the Hitting Prospect of the Year honors from MiLB. Jonah Tong (Mets), Trey Yesavage (Blue Jays), and Griffin Herring (Yankees/Rockies) are finalists for Pitching Prospect of the Year.
The official award winners will be named on September 29 on MLB Network, but it seems pretty clear that Griffin and Tong will take home honors.
Tong, a right-hander with a delivery reminiscent of Tim Lincecum, dominated the minors before making his MLB debut in late August. He led the minor leagues in both ERA and strikeouts, the first pitcher to do so since 1963. Griffin shut down thoughts that he’ll need to move to center field with strong defense at short while climbing three levels this season. He slashed .333/.415/.527 with 23 doubles, 21 homers, 94 RBI, and 65 steals over 122 games.
The international jump from high school to the pros
It’s uncommon, but not unheard of, for players in Japan or Korea to forego the NPB or KBO drafts to sign with an MLB team. Shohei Ohtani considered such a move out of high school, even reportedly coming close to an agreement with the Dodgers at one point, before sticking to his commitment to enter the NPB draft.
More recently, Rintaro Sasaki elected to skip going pro in Japan and instead enrolled at Stanford University — where he hit .269/.377/.413 with 7 home runs in 52 games as a freshman — after setting high school home run records in Japan.
Right-hander Genki Ishigaki could be the top selection in next month’s NPB Draft, but is reportedly considering signing with an MLB team instead, according to a report from Yahoo! Japan. Ishigaki is considered a favorite to land with either the Tokyo Giants or Yakult Swallows, but as many as ten major league teams have reached out to his representatives.
Ishigaki worked out of the bullpen for Japan’s U-18 World Cup team, allowing just a single hit over 7.1 IP while reportedly touching 98 mph.
Meanwhile, Canada’s TSN is reporting that the Blue Jays have signed 18-year-old Moon Seojun out of Korea. Seojun reportedly turned down offers in excess of $1 million from the Dodgers and Mets in August.
The right-hander was 6-2 with a 2.18 ERA, 93 strikeouts, and 47 walks over 66.0 IP during his three years of high school. He didn’t allow a single home run and was expected to be a top-three pick in the KBO Draft.