Latest news with #SutterHealthBallpark
New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
A's Luis Severino: ‘I'm not the only one' who feels uncomfortable playing at Sacramento
NEW YORK — Sacramento A's starting pitcher Luis Severino doesn't worry about about speaking his mind. He called himself the 'worst pitcher in the game' after a brutal stretch two years ago. Last season, while playing for the New York Mets, he said that the New York Yankees 'only have two good hitters,' referring to Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. Advertisement So Severino wasn't going to back down Sunday from his comments earlier in the week bashing the conditions in Sacramento, where the A's are playing this season as they transition from Oakland to Las Vegas. And he shrugged at a report saying the organization 'can't wait' to trade him. 'I can't do nothing about if they get mad or not,' he said after getting roughed up in a 12-5 loss at Yankee Stadium. 'I just say what it is. 'If you ask me how I feel pitching at home, I'm not going to lie to you. Because at the end, you guys are going to figure out if it's a lie or not. My job is here to try to pitch and every time you ask me a question, be honest with you guys. So, that's what I did.' Severino said other A's players feel the way he does about playing at Sutter Health Ballpark, a minor-league stadium. 'I was not trying to hurt anyone's feelings by saying that,' he said. 'But I'm not the only one who feels the same way.' On Friday, Severino said 'it feels like a spring training game' when he pitches at home, and he pointed out the ballpark's lack of air conditioning, small crowds and how its clubhouse is in left field. 'It's really tough,' he said. Early Sunday, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported that the A's 'can't wait' to trade Severino and that he was 'agitating the organization' with his comments about their current home stadium. 'If they trade me or not, I'm going to keep grinding,' he said. 'Trying to be my best going out there.' Manager Mark Kotsay deflected when asked if he thought Severino would be with the A's after the trade deadline. 'Those decisions are above me,' he said. 'I mean, I'm involved in them. Obviously, I have a voice. But as far as what we do at the deadline, we're still far away from the deadline. There's still, what, over three weeks to get there or more. We'll tackle that question when we get closer.' Advertisement The A's signed Severino to a three-year, $67 million deal in December — the richest guaranteed contract in franchise history. The problem for Severino? The A's might call Sacramento home for a while. The club had a stadium groundbreaking ceremony Monday in Las Vegas, and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told the Las Vegas Review Journal that 'we're glad that we'll have a team here in '28.' Kotsay added that he believes Severino's frustration with Sutter Health Ballpark 'comes from when you don't have success.' Severino is 0-7 with a 6.79 ERA in 10 starts at home. On the road, he's 2-2 with a 3.23 ERA in eight starts. He gave up six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings Sunday on three strikeouts, three walks and five hits, including a three-run home run to Jazz Chisholm Jr. and a two-run shot to Judge. 'For Sevy,' Kotsay said, 'he can talk about it, but I think at the end of the day, when he's asked by the players and by his teammates, he understands our situation. He's not looking to make excuses about performance. You have to just pitch better.' Severino was also the victim of defensive lapses Sunday, including a popup that fell for a hit due to miscommunication, a dropped fly ball and a ball that bounced under the glove of center fielder Denzel Clarke, guaranteeing a bases-clearing triple for Chisholm in the third inning. 'At this level,' Kotsay said, 'those plays should be made.' But Severino also said that worries that he was tipping pitches when the Detroit Tigers rocked him for seven runs in his previous outing leaked into his performance Sunday. He said that he tried to correct possible pitch tipping in a bullpen session at Yankee Stadium on Friday afternoon. During the session, someone from the A's placed a towel over the bullpen camera — presumably so that the Yankees use it to watch Severino work. The feed from the visiting bullpen camera is displayed in the Yankees' dugout, along with a feed from the home bullpen. The Yankees surely can watch the feed elsewhere, too. Advertisement ' Today, if you see the last game compared to (this) one, I changed my mechanics,' Severino said. 'I changed my glove positioning because I feel I was not having rhythm. I was thinking too much about the tipping thing.' He didn't lie about how he's been pitching lately, either. 'It's not been the best stretch,' he said. 'I feel I was very good on the road and then the last two starts have not been very good. Just need to figure it out.'
New York Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
A's Luis Severino complains about Sacramento ballpark, says it's like pitching in spring training
NEW YORK — Athletics starting pitcher Luis Severino said he's still not enjoying pitching at his new home in Sacramento — and it doesn't seem like that will change anytime soon. Severino listed smaller crowds, a lack of air conditioning and a different kind of energy, among other factors, as drawbacks to pitching at Sutter Health Ballpark — the minor-league stadium the A's retrofitted into their home park this season after leaving Oakland Coliseum. Advertisement 'It feels like a spring training kind of game every time I pitch, and every time other guys pitch,' Severino said before his team faced the New York Yankees on Friday night at Yankee Stadium. 'It's the same mentality we have, to go out there and try to do our best. But it's not been great for us.' Severino has been terrible at Sutter Health Ballpark and very good on the road. He's gone 0-7 with a 6.79 ERA in 10 starts at home. On the road, he's 2-1 with a 2.27 ERA in seven starts. Why has he been so much better on the road? 'Because we play in a big-league stadium on the road,' he said. 'We don't have that at home right now. It's not the same. It's not the same atmosphere. We don't have a lot of fans. Our clubhouse is in left field. So, when we play day games, we have to just be in the sun. There's no air conditioning there, too. It's really tough.' Severino added that 'you don't feel the same energy' at the ballpark, which has a total capacity of 14,014. For comparison, Yankee Stadium — Severino's home for the first nine years of his career — has a capacity of 52,325. Severino will pitch Sunday at Yankee Stadium — his first time pitching in the Bronx since 2023, his final season with the Yankees. Severino added that the Sacramento ballpark's layout has been a challenge. When pitching, he said he prefers to watch the game on TV in the clubhouse between innings. But he can't do that in Sacramento because the A's clubhouse is in left field — too far of a walk. 'I feel like when I watch the game on TV, it feels like the game is easy, so I can just go out there and try to do that,' he said. 'At home, it's been tough, because the only way you can do that is go out of the stadium and go to left field and then come back in. After that, it's going to be really tough. So there's not much that we can do.' Advertisement Severino isn't the only A's pitcher having trouble in Sacramento. The A's have the second-worst home ERA in baseball at 5.67, behind only the Colorado Rockies at 6.22. The A's might be calling Sacramento home for a while. The club had a stadium groundbreaking ceremony Monday in Las Vegas. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told the Las Vegas Review Journal that 'we're glad that we'll have a team here in '28.' Here's a video of a portion of the groundbreaking ceremony for the new stadium for the @Athletics on the Las Vegas Strip! 🏟️ ⚾️ — City of Las Vegas (@CityOfLasVegas) June 23, 2025 The Tampa Bay Rays are also playing at a minor-league stadium. They've called George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa their home this season after Hurricane Milton damaged Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., in October. The A's gave Severino, 31, a three-year, $67-million contract in December — the richest guaranteed deal in franchise history. Severino voiced similar concerns after giving up eight earned runs over four-plus innings to the Yankees in a 12-2 loss at home May 11. 'It's tough to pitch here,' Severino said at the time, according to a report from the Sacramento Bee. 'You're just not used to (it) — you have a routine. You have a routine your whole life, then you come here and just (have to) work around whatever you have here.' Other players have complained about the ballpark, too. The Philadelphia Phillies' Zack Wheeler said the A's mound was 'terrible' and that it felt like 'cement.' The Minnesota Twins' Carlos Correa said the batter's box was 'the worst I've ever stepped in.' Twins pitcher Joe Ryan wondered if the mound played a role in an injury to teammate Pablo López.
