San Jose Giants, Oakland Ballers will face-off in "Battle of the Bay 2.0"

CBS News

02-04-2025

SAN JOSE — A new chapter in Bay Area baseball kicks off Wednesday
Baseball has been a big part of Bay Area history, but the A's leaving Oakland brought an end to the long-standing Battle of the Bay, at least that's what people thought.
Then, president of the San Jose Giants Ben Taylor had what felt like a far-fetched proposal.
"It was one of those late-night ideas," said Taylor. "There's a void that has to be filled."
Taylor grew up in the Bay Area and played baseball through high school.
He looked forward to seeing the Giants and the A's face off each year and was disappointed it was over, so he reached out to the owners of the Oakland Ballers to propose a new "Battle of the Bay 2.0." This time it will be between San Jose and Oakland.
"We're taking a piece of the Bay Area history that has meant so much to this area and this region of fan and bringing it back," said Taylor.
Co-founder of the Ballers, Paul Freedman, jumped at the opportunity.
"We just want to make sure that the excitement of baseball stays around," said Freedman. "To our knowledge the first time in the history of baseball that an independent minor league team is playing an affiliated minor league team."
The Giants are single-A affiliate for the San Francisco Giants; the Ballers play in the independent Pioneer League.
"It's a big opportunity for them to show up in the spotlight, televised game, and see what they can do," said Freedman about his team.
The Ballers haven't started spring training yet, but they're going to try to be ready for their first appearance at Excite Ballpark in San Jose, potentially in front of 3,200 fans.
"You get an intimate entertainment experience that you just don't have much of anywhere else in the Silicon Valley," said Taylor.
Taylor said people will be traveling from across the Bay Area to see the Battle of the Bay 2.0.
"We've got folks driving down from areas of Northern California that we don't generally see tickets purchased from, certainly folks are going to be purchasing hotel rooms, staying the night enjoying everything San Jose has to offer in addition to the game," said Taylor about the economic impact of the game.
Both teams hope this will be just the first meeting in a long, friendly rivalry.
"This is the inaugural season but will be far from the last time that this game takes place," said Taylor.
They'll be creating new traditions for a new era of Bay Area sports.