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PiGon
2-26-18 - A's
Laney College -- permanently shelved?
2-26-18 - A's
Oakland Coliseum -- Access abounds.
2-26-18 - A's
Howard Terminal -- Oakland mayor's preference.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

A's New Ballpark:
Are the Athletics still at Home Plate?

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez
The saga of the Oakland Athletics' new ballpark continues. The final score? There's still no final score. But the A's might find themselves back at first base in a stadium issue, in which the Bay Area is always difficult to score.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said the Howard Terminal site is a big positive but BART has told the A's to forget about a new ballpark by Howard Terminal.

The mayor of Oakland, Libby Schaaf, is a big proponent of the Howard Terminal site but BART carries a lot of weight in this deal and, obviously, a lot of passengers, as it is one of the most popular transportation assets for A's fans attending the games at the Oakland Coliseum.

It seems like it was during another life, years ago, that I attended a pro-A's move to Fremont rally in that city. Fremont is currently the fourth-most populated city in the Bay Area. Only San José, San Francisco and Oakland have more residents, respectively. Fremont used to be a bedroom community with one large employer, the old General Motors/New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. plant.

Today it is Tesla and the city of Fremont is steadily increasing in residents, as it has become very conveniently named The Silicon Valley East. BART has been extended to Warm Springs and will continue into Santa Clara county later this year. As a matter of record, one year the Athletics included in their media guide, with great optimism, a design of the proposed Fremont ballpark. The Fremont site idea struck out quickly.

This March 29, at 1:05 p.m., the A's will open their 50th season in Oakland. They have played at the Oakland Coliseum since 1968, when they arrived from Kansas City, MO. The Coliseum still is a perfect location when it comes to transportation. It is hard to find another sports facility in the Bay Area, including AT&T Park in San Francisco, with better access for mass transportation. The Coliseum, with Highway 880 to the west and the BART station behind left field, to the east, is the perfect transportation location. And let's not forget the Amtrak station behind the stadium. Since Opening Day being on a rare afternoon at the Coliseum, I would probably leave the car at home and take BART.

The A's new ballpark game has been in extra innings, with no scores now for years, but it seems like the A's have still not left first base. A guy who I covered since his rookie season in 1979, and who could leave first base at a moment notice, Rickey Henderson, told me years ago when I asked the question on where the new ballpark should be. 

Rickey responded: "Why not right here at the Coliseum?"

Oakland A's play-by-play announcer Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is now entering his 24th season as the Voice of the A's for all Spanish broadcasts. For a sixth straight year, Pi-Gonzalez will also do selected games for the Los Angeles Angels on Fox Sports Network West in Southern California. Reprinted courtesy Amaury Pi-Gonzalez: That's Amaury's News and Commentary. For more information, visit: SportsRadioService

Pops
3-6-17 - Pops

Michael King (left), with an associate from USF (center), and Karla Granadino-King, are pictured at the Olympic Club in San Francisco,  proudly sharing with the world their  Pops Premium Rumpopo. A King family secret, Pops Premium Rumpopo is a  delicious rum cream liqueur recipe brewed in the family tradition.  The award winning recipe is a Belizean family favorite and now available at all Total Wine & More stores in California and Bay Area retailers.
For more information, visit https://www.bzecheers.com/rumpopo

Pops - Original
Pops Back Label