Sacramento Athletics' New Park & Impact on Team Strategy

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00:00Let's talk about the, I guess, now Sacramento Athletics.

00:02We'll just call them the A's.

00:04They're gonna play in a PCL park in Sacramento.

00:06It's Sutter Health Park.

00:07And just for reference, the real only difference

00:10between that park and the Coliseum where the A's play

00:12is it's three feet more out to center field in the new park,

00:17five feet less down the right field line in the new park.

00:21So maybe some pull guys might be able to help that.

00:24I like this team a lot.

00:25I think Shae Langeleers is a great catching option.

00:27Tyler Soderstrom is my breakout pick.

00:30There are bench guys, there's Speed and Ruiz,

00:32but Jeffrey Springs.

00:33Jeffrey Springs is the guy here that makes this team legit.

00:37You add in Severino, when Luis Medina comes back,

00:40they have a good bullpen.

00:41I think they're over there.

00:42I think it was 70 and a half on their win total.

00:45Let's talk about the SAC-aths.

00:49I don't know if I wanna talk about those.

00:49You gotta get something better than that.

00:52A little early to talk about your SAC-aths.

00:54You know, if you wanna go see a medical professional,

00:56if you need to do that.

00:58The Sacramento Athletics,

00:59or whatever the heck they are today, as Matt pointed out.

01:02This is a very intriguing squad,

01:03because you look at the depth of lineup

01:06and you look at this ballpark, right?

01:08You're going from one of the most difficult

01:10hitter environments to, with all that foul territory,

01:12you pop up a ball, you're basically out.

01:14It's a tough ball to hit,

01:16a tough ballpark to hit home runs out of,

01:18yet it didn't seem to stunt Brent Rooker.

01:20And now you're moving them to a ballpark

01:22that is more hitter-friendly.

01:24With all these major league hitters,

01:26it's PCL kind of friendly.

01:28You're also packing the ballpark.

01:29And don't dismiss that, too.

01:31Playing in front of people,

01:33as opposed to, you know, 4,000 people,

01:35you'll be playing to a lot of packed houses here,

01:36because this is a minor league town

01:39that is now getting a major league product.

01:41There are gonna be asses in the seats,

01:42and I think that's gonna be a really positive thing.

01:44It's gonna be a short-lived novelty,

01:46but people, I think, are really gonna show up here.

01:49And that's gonna have a positive impact on the athletics.

01:51I love Brent Rooker.

01:52You saw the breakout last year from Lawrence Butler.

01:55Mason Miller throws 101 miles an hour out of the bullpen.

01:58You mentioned Soderstrom, Shea Langillears.

02:01You got Gelof.

02:01You got J.J. Bladet, who was a player I always liked

02:04when the Marlins drafted him,

02:05and I didn't think got a fair shot.

02:07I got Jacob Wilson, Jack Wilson's son,

02:10who's gonna be playing shortstop.

02:11This is a really good young team that's got some power.

02:14Severino at the top of this rotation now.

02:16I'm skeptical just a tad about Springs.

02:18I don't like when Tampa lets go of pitchers.

02:20That's usually a red flag,

02:21but they're just kind of in a spot

02:23where they just had too many arms and not enough spots,

02:25so it just made sense.

02:26But regardless, keep a close eye on the A's.

02:29This is a team that I think could really get off

02:31to a hot start in 25.

02:33All right, let's talk a bit about the Toronto Blue Jays.

02:36Vlad Jr. in a contract year.

02:38Santander comes on.

02:39Bo Bichette looking for a bounce back.

02:41They have the big three in the lineup.

02:42I think Andres Jimenez is a great add.

02:45We'll see what Will Wagner can do.

02:46He's a 26-year-old left-handed bat

02:48that came over from Houston.

02:49What do you see about the Jays?

02:52Well, the Jays pitching has to hold together.

02:53Kevin Gossman needs to bounce back.

02:54A weird season for Kevin Gossman.

02:56They side Max Scherzer.

02:58I don't know what he's got left in the tank,

03:00but you still have Berrios, you have Bassett.

03:02Those are two very steady guys.

03:04So there's potential for four starters.

03:06You like this rotation, then Bowden Francis,

03:07who had a lot of good stuff last year in 2024.

03:11He could build on in 2025.

03:13This lineup, though, is scary

03:14because you do have Springer, Vlad, Santander, Bo Bichette.

03:18So the first half, again, top heavy.

03:19They need some more depth.

03:21But Vlad in a contract year

03:22with Santander around there to help protect.

03:24That is a really good situation for Vlad to be in,

03:27to go cash in this offseason.

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