WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — They stood in line for hours before the gates opened Monday, snapped pictures and tried to fully comprehend the enormity of the moment.
For the first time, an authentic regular-season Major League Baseball game was being played in Sacramento, California.
They may not be called the Oakland Athletics any longer, but they are still the Athletics, playing in front of a sellout crowd of about 14,000 against the Chicago Cubs at Sutter Health Park, proud to call West Sacramento their new home.
It wasn’t a game the Athletics will show on their season highlight reel, routed, 18-3, with Cubs catcher Carson Kelly hitting for the cycle, but it was still a new beginning.
“We’ve been embraced here,’’ A’s manager Mark Kotsay says, “in every which way.’’
They had all of the pomp and circumstance just like every other home opener in their history, but nothing was quite like this night. The entire Athletics team wore No. 24 in honor of the late Hall of Fame center fielder Rickey Henderson. Henderson’s three daughters threw out the ceremonial first pitches. Dave Stewart, the legendary A’s pitcher who was one of Henderson’s best friends, was on hand, too.
The @Athletics honor Rickey Henderson with every player wearing No. 24 in their home opener 💚💛 pic.twitter.com/OGdGnowyTB
— MLB (@MLB) April 1, 2025
It was an emotional evening for Stewart, born and raised in Oakland. He hated leaving the Coliseum, but seeing the euphoria, all of the joy, fans stopping and taking pictures of him as he tried to get to his suite, let him understand what it meant for the people of Sacramento.
“You know, it’s not the best of feeling that this isn’t happening in Oakland,’’ Stewart said, “but the other piece of this is that I’m part of the organization, whether ...
