Latest news with #RiverCats
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Giants encouraged by Harrison's progression after intriguing start
Giants encouraged by Harrison's progression after intriguing start originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area SAN FRANCISCO — You never can have too much depth in the starting rotation, and that's a good problem the Giants have right now. Advertisement Two of San Francisco's intriguing, young arms, righty Hayden Birdsong and lefty Kyle Harrison, both are hoping their early 2025 season success eventually leads to rotation spots that don't exist at the current moment. The 23-year-old Birdsong has been a revelation for the Giants out of the bullpen this season, posting a 1.13 ERA with 18 strikeouts to six walks in 16 innings pitched. Harrison on the other hand, also 23, began the season in Triple-A Sacramento after his slow start to spring training due to offseason shoulder rehab preceded a bout with the flu that led to him losing between 10 and 15 pounds as he began to make strides in camp. In six starts with the River Cats, Harrison has a 3.46 ERA with 38 strikeouts to eight walks in 26 innings pitched. The numbers are decent, but perhaps the most impressive development has been the velocity he's shown in recent outings, including his start (5 IP, 6 H, ER, 0 BB, 7 Ks) against the Reno Aces on Wednesday where his fastball almost touched 98 mph. For context, he averaged 92.5 mph on his fastball in 24 starts with the Giants in 2024. Advertisement The uptick in velocity certainly caught many people's attention on Wednesday night, including Giants manager Bob Melvin, who was asked before Thursday's game against the Colorado Rockies at Oracle Park if the young lefty soon could be an option at the major-league level. 'I think he could be an option at any point in time, but what we have here is what we have,' Melvin said. 'We've played pretty well, we're trying to create an environment of some stability. Now obviously you're going to want to get the best possible complement that you can here. But it's good to see that the velocity is picking up, because for a guy like him that's important. More swings and misses. So it's probably his best performance and we'll see where we go from here.' While there might not be a path back to the majors for Harrison at this current moment, Melvin is encouraged by his early season development and believes he can provide the pitching staff with key depth throughout the summer. 'Seems like it now,' Melvin said when asked if Harrison is back to where the team wants him physically. 'And even when he started down there, it was more like four, five innings [and April 24 vs. El Paso was six]. It just feels like the stuff is getting better and better. He's trending in the right direction, and that's a good sign for us.' Advertisement Both Harrison and Birdsong will have to wait their turns for their next shot in the rotation, and while the latter might get the first crack, the former should be the next man up afterward should the Giants need it. Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast
Fox News
15-04-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
Minor league baseball team reverses Gold Diggers name change after outrage
The Athletics were far from the only baseball team in Sacramento, California, receiving criticism at the start of the season. The minor league organization in town generated some heat last week. The Sacramento River Cats were set to partake in a recent minor league baseball tradition – changing their team for a period of time to promote their alternate identity. For example, the Somerset Patriots played as the Jersey Diners, and the Lehigh Valley IronPigs are set to compete as the Lehigh Valley Tomato Pie, just to name a few. The River Cats were set to play as the Sacramento Gold Diggers, seemingly a throwback to the California Gold Rush. The city of Sacramento was a haven for gold miners in the late 1840s and was turned into a thriving community and incorporated into California in 1850. "Inspired by the regional history of the California Gold Rush, this new identity offers a connection to the significant impact of this era when Sacramento grew as the closest major city to the gold fields," the team said in a news release Thursday, via The Sacramento Bee. The team released a video showcasing the team name but also leaned into an old trope as it showed two women with dollar signs on their eyes when they saw a player. The video, which has since been deleted from the team's social media pages, caused some outrage and the organization reversed their decision on the name. Sacramento Bee columnist Robin Epley ripped the rebranding as a "misogynistic joke on women." More people reacted on X. "Our recent marketing campaign for an alternative identity clearly missed the mark," the team said in a statement. "Our intention was to creatively reference the rich history of Sacramento and gold country, but our approach was wrong, and we are sorry for the mistake. We will no longer be using this identity." The River Cats are an affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sacramento minor league team scraps 'sexist and demeaning' Gold Diggers identity 1 day after reveal, backlash
The Sacramento River Cats, Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants and current co-tenant of the Athletics, unveiled a new alternate identity on Thursday. It didn't go well. Sacramento announced it would take the field five times as the "Sacramento Gold Diggers," with a black and gold uniform featuring miner and dollar sign logos in a supposed nod to the city's history with the California gold rush. Of course, the term "gold digger" has come to mean something else these days. Advertisement The merchandise was put up for sale immediately, with the team saying it would be wearing its new uniforms for the first time on April 19. River Cats president and COO Chip Maxson even appeared on local news fully decked out in the new look. The River Cats removed all benefit of the doubt when they posted a video — preserved in this reaction video on the Sacramento Bee's website — in which two women, one of them apparently in a relationship with an older man, get distracted by a guy in a Gold Digger get-up, with cartoon dollar signs in their eyes. There was immediate criticism that the River Cats' new identity held up a sexist trope, so much so that the team immediately backtracked. All social media posts about the Gold Diggers have been removed and the merchandise is no longer available on any online shop. Advertisement The team released a statement to SF Gate's Alex Simon calling the whole idea a mistake: 'Our recent marketing campaign for an alternative identity clearly missed the mark. Our intention was to creatively reference the rich history of Sacramento and gold country, but our approach was wrong, and we are sorry for the mistake. We will no longer be using this identity.' The Sacramento River Cats will only play as the Sacramento River Cats this season. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) Wacky alternate identities, or even primary identities, have become the norm in minor league baseball, and the River Cats were clearly trying to follow suit here. These set-ups allow teams to sell merch to both local fans and a general audience, while still holding out onto their established identity. Maxson told CBS News Sacramento the team is "all about having fun" and the marketing team "did a great job of brainstorming," but they apparently didn't anticipate what the response would be, particularly from women in local office, as compiled by the Bee: 'As a woman, as a mom, as an elected official — I was shocked,' said West Sacramento City Councilwoman and Mayor Pro-Tem, Verna Sulpizio-Hull. 'The video is disrespectful to women, misogynistic and downright offensive. This attempt to market a team that we love, with such a demeaning message about women, does not align with our values in West Sacramento.' Sacramento City Councilwoman Lisa Kaplan called the video 'sexist and demeaning' in a tweet and likened it to a '1950s-era Mad Men' advertisement. 'At this time in our nation, where women's rights are being reversed, it is more important than ever that women leaders stand up and denounce any time women are seen as token sex pieces or less than equal,' she wrote in a statement. West Sacramento City Councilwoman Quirina Orozco, in whose district Sutter Health Park sits, and the longest-serving councilwoman in the history of the city said that she found the video offensive and was upset by its use. 'This video does not comport with the positive and well-established reputation of our minor league champions. We expect better. We can do better,' Orozco wrote in a statement Thursday evening. One day later, the Gold Diggers were no more.
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sacramento River Cats dig themselves into hole with Gold Diggers name, video that insults women
Sacramento River Cats' Keaton Winn pitches during an exhibition game against the San Francisco Giants on March 23 at Sutter Health Park. The River Cats have scrapped plans to call themselves the Gold Diggers during certain games after complaints that the term is offensive toward women. (Scott Marshall / Getty Images) A minor league affiliate of the San Francisco Giants has scrapped plans to use "Gold Diggers" as an alternative team name during a handful of games this year after women were offended by a video marketing the name. Advertisement The Sacramento River Cats, who play in the triple-A Pacific Coast League and currently share Sutter Health Park with the MLB's Athletics, announced Thursday that they would be playing as the Sacramento Gold Diggers during five games this season, starting with an April 19 home game against the Salt Lake City Bees. The Gold Diggers logo featured a bearded man, who appeared to be a miner, carrying a pickaxe over his shoulder and wearing a headlamp with a baseball where the light should be. A promotional video, which has since been removed from YouTube and online, seems to have somewhat stuck with the Gold Rush theme while also leaning into the meaning of "gold digger" that insults women. The video reportedly depicted two women with dollar signs in place of their eyes staring at a baseball player who had just emerged from a gold mine. One of the women is said to have been wearing a low-cut top with a large ring on her finger while accompanied by a man looking much older than her. Read more: Dodgers' minor league team unwittingly rebrands with a NSFW name Advertisement The River Cats apologized Friday afternoon in a statement emailed to The Times. "Our recent marketing campaign for an alternative identity clearly missed the mark," the team wrote. "Our intention was to creatively reference the rich history of Sacramento and gold country, but our approach was wrong, and we are sorry for the mistake. We will no longer be using this identity." Merchandise featuring the Gold Diggers name and logo — including women's and men's T-shirts that had the name in large letters with "baseball" in much smaller letters underneath and a large, gold dollar sign below that — was removed from the team's online store around noon Friday. According to the Sacramento Bee, multiple elected officials from Sacramento and West Sacramento attempted Thursday to get the River Cats to scrub the promotional video online. Advertisement "I was appalled by the sexist and offensive marketing ad chosen by a well respected and beloved team," West Sacramento City Councilmember Quirina Orozco said in a statement emailed to The Times. "I speak for many who have fought hard to uplift women's voices, remove barriers to leadership, and pave pathways for women and girls everywhere when I say that messages like these should be denounced and have no place in our community. "I'm pleased that the River Cats have pulled their campaign and hope to work with them on future remediation efforts that benefit women and girls throughout our region." Read more: Like it or not, the A's have a new home, and it's a win for this scrappy city Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
11-04-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Sacramento River Cats dig themselves into hole with Gold Diggers name, video that insults women
A minor league affiliate of the San Francisco Giants has scrapped plans to use 'Gold Diggers' as an alternative team name during a handful of games this year after women were offended by a video marketing the name. The Sacramento River Cats, who play in the triple-A Pacific Coast League and currently share Sutter Health Park with the MLB's Athletics, announced Thursday that they would be playing as the Sacramento Gold Diggers during five games this season, starting with an April 19 home game against the Salt Lake City Bees. The Gold Diggers logo featured a bearded man, who appeared to be a miner, carrying a pickaxe over his shoulder and wearing a headlamp with a baseball where the light should be. A promotional video, which has since been removed from YouTube and online, seems to have somewhat stuck with the Gold Rush theme while also leaning into the meaning of 'gold digger' that insults women. The video reportedly depicted two women with dollar signs in place of their eyes staring at a baseball player who had just emerged from a gold mine. One of the women is said to have been wearing a low-cut top with a large ring on her finger while accompanied by a man looking much older than her. The River Cats apologized Friday afternoon in a statement emailed to The Times. 'Our recent marketing campaign for an alternative identity clearly missed the mark,' the team wrote. 'Our intention was to creatively reference the rich history of Sacramento and gold country, but our approach was wrong, and we are sorry for the mistake. We will no longer be using this identity.' Merchandise featuring the Gold Diggers name and logo — including women's and men's T-shirts that had the name in large letters with 'baseball' in much smaller letters underneath and a large, gold dollar sign below that — was removed from the team's online store around noon Friday. According to the Sacramento Bee, multiple elected officials from Sacramento and West Sacramento attempted Thursday to get the River Cats to scrub the promotional video online. 'I was appalled by the sexist and offensive marketing ad chosen by a well respected and beloved team,' West Sacramento City Councilmember Quirina Orozco said in a statement emailed to The Times. 'I speak for many who have fought hard to uplift women's voices, remove barriers to leadership, and pave pathways for women and girls everywhere when I say that messages like these should be denounced and have no place in our community. 'I'm pleased that the River Cats have pulled their campaign and hope to work with them on future remediation efforts that benefit women and girls throughout our region.'
