There are many reasons why Sonny Gray enjoys returning to the place he first called home in the majors, and not all of them are from the past like the photos of his oldest son with Stomper, the Oakland Athletics' pachydermatous mascot. “Dude, I love it,” Gray recalled saying teammates. Gray added a fitting bookend to his relationship with this concrete ballpark by the Bay before its ballclub moves elsewhere: In his first appearance at the Coliseum back in 2013 he got his first career win, and in what is likely his final appearance at the Coliseum he earned win No. 100.

There are many reasons why Sonny Gray enjoys returning to the place he first called home in the majors, and not all of them are from the past like the photos of his oldest son with Stomper, the Oakland Athletics' pachydermatous mascot. “Dude, I love it,” Gray recalled saying teammates. Gray added a fitting bookend to his relationship with this concrete ballpark by the Bay before its ballclub moves elsewhere: In his first appearance at the Coliseum back in 2013 he got his first career win, and in what is likely his final appearance at the Coliseum he earned win No. 100.

Ken Holtzman, a former MLB star pitcher who won multiple World Series titles and threw two no-hitters during his career, has died, the Chicago Cubs announced Monday. Holtzman died Sunday night after he was hospitalized for three weeks as he battled heart issues, his brother, Bob, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

St. Louis Cardinals (8-9, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Oakland Athletics (7-10, third in the AL West) Oakland, California; Tuesday, 9:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Cardinals: Lance Lynn (0-0, 2.63 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 18 strikeouts); Athletics: JP Sears (1-1, 5.17 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, seven strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK : LINE Cardinals -149, Athletics +126; over/under is 8 runs BOTTOM LINE: The St. Louis Cardinals play the Oakland Athletics with a 1-0 series lead. Oakland has a 7-10 record overall and a 3-8 record in home games. The Athletics have a 5-3 record in games decided by one run. St. Louis has a 5-6 record in road games and an 8-9 record overall. Cardinals pitchers have a collective 3.74 ERA,

St. Louis Cardinals (8-9, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Oakland Athletics (7-10, third in the AL West) Oakland, California; Tuesday, 9:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Cardinals: Lance Lynn (0-0, 2.63 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 18 strikeouts); Athletics: JP Sears (1-1, 5.17 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, seven strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK : LINE Cardinals -149, Athletics +126; over/under is 8 runs BOTTOM LINE: The St. Louis Cardinals play the Oakland Athletics with a 1-0 series lead. Oakland has a 7-10 record overall and a 3-8 record in home games. The Athletics have a 5-3 record in games decided by one run. St. Louis has a 5-6 record in road games and an 8-9 record overall. Cardinals pitchers have a collective 3.74 ERA,

Esteury Ruiz Gets Called Back to Oakland, Homers in First At-Bat Author: Jason Burke Apr 16, 2024 Oakland A's outfielder Esteury Ruiz has had an eventful season in 2024, which has spanned a total of eight at-bats with the big-league club. In the first seven, Ruiz went 3-for-7 with a double, a triple, and a stolen base before he was optioned down to Triple-A Las Vegas to make room for new addition Tyler Nevin. This move befuddled the fans, which started a bit of a tongue in cheek conspiracy theory they deemed "WristbandGate." Ruiz had been wearing wristbands from the A's fan group Last Dive Bar, one of the groups that have helped organize Fan's Fest, the reverse boycott, Unite the Bay events,

Ken Holtzman, MLB's winningest Jewish pitcher who threw two no-hitters for the Chicago Cubs and helped the Oakland Athletics win three straight World Series championships in the 1970s, has died, the Cubs announced Monday on social media. Holtzman's brother Bob Holtzman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he died Sunday night after being hospitalized for three weeks.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- - Sonny Gray struck out six and didn't walk a batter over six scoreless innings to beat his former club, and Willson Contreras doubled twice and drove in a run for the St. Louis Cardinals in their 3-1 win against the Oakland Athletics on Monday night. Nolan Arenado hit an RBI single in the first to stake Gray (2-0) to an early lead against an Oakland team that had won three of four and drew a crowd of 5,508. Esteury Ruiz was called up by Oakland shortly before first pitch from Triple-A Las Vegas and hit a pinch homer in the eighth. Gray - who had been set to be the Cardinals' opening day starter before straining his right hamstring in his second spring outing - surrendered four hits in his impressive first road start of 2024 with his new club.

Brandon Crawford has been to the Coliseum plenty of times, but the vibe was decidedly different Monday night for the St. Louis Cardinals shortstop. It's not certain that Crawford will play at all in the series, given his job as a backup shortstop and mentor for starter Maysn Winn. “It's a tough role, not playing every day and not getting your timing going with the bat,” Crawford said in the visiting dugout a few hours before the game. The series will be the closest thing to a homecoming until the Cardinals visit Oracle Park in the final regular season of the series Sept. 25-27.

Sonny Gray returned to where it all started Monday night and for one night anyway, put his former team in its place. The St. Louis Cardinals beat the A's 3-1 at the Coliseum, with Gray getting the 100th win of his major league career. The A's loss came before an announced crowd of 5,508, much of it wearing Cardinals red, and cooled off a team that came in having won three consecutive series for the first time since 2021. Esteury Ruiz gave the A's and manager Mark Kotsay and general manager David Forst something to think about in the eighth inning, hitting a 406-foot pinch homer off JoJo Romero to break up the shutout.

Brandon Crawford has been to the Coliseum plenty of times, but the vibe was decidedly different Monday night for the St. Louis Cardinals shortstop. It's not certain that Crawford will play at all in the series, given his job as a backup shortstop and mentor for starter Maysn Winn. “It's a tough role, not playing every day and not getting your timing going with the bat,” Crawford said in the visiting dugout a few hours before the game. The series will be the closest thing to a homecoming until the Cardinals visit Oracle Park in the final regular season of the series Sept. 25-27.

Ken Holtzman, MLB's winningest Jewish pitcher who threw two no-hitters for the Chicago Cubs and helped the Oakland Athletics win three straight World Series championships in the 1970s, has died, the Cubs announced Monday on social media. Holtzman's brother Bob Holtzman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he died Sunday night after being hospitalized for three weeks.

Ken Holtzman, MLB's winningest Jewish pitcher who threw two no-hitters for the Chicago Cubs and helped the Oakland Athletics win three straight World Series championships in the 1970s, has died, the Cubs announced Monday on social media. Holtzman's brother Bob Holtzman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he died Sunday night after being hospitalized for three weeks.

Ken Holtzman, MLB's winningest Jewish pitcher who threw two no-hitters for the Chicago Cubs and helped the Oakland Athletics win three straight World Series championships in the 1970s, has died, the Cubs announced Monday on social media. Holtzman's brother Bob Holtzman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he died Sunday night after being hospitalized for three weeks. Holtzman grew up in the St. Louis area and starred at the University of Illinois before becoming a two-time All-Star.

Ken Holtzman, a St. Louis native who pitched 15 years in the Major Leagues and was part of the Oakland Athletics dynasty from the 1970s, died Sunday evening at the age of 78 from an undisclosed heart ailment and respiratory issues.

Ken Holtzman, who along with Catfish Hunter and Vida Blue anchored the dominating rotation that helped lead the Oakland A's to three straight World Series championships in the 1970s, has died. Holtzman's death was confirmed by his brother, Bob, according to Benjamin Hochman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Holtzman's hometown newspaper. Holtzman had been hospitalized for the past three weeks due to heart issues, according to Hochman.

Lawrence Butler will shed his usual jersey for No. 42 Monday night when the Athletics begin a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals. As the lone African-American player on the A's roster, wearing Jackie Robinson's number means something to the 23-year-old right fielder. Every year on April 15 since 2004, players and coaches from all teams wear No. 42 to commemorate the day Robinson broke the Major League Baseball color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. “It will mean a lot,” Butler said before the A's closed out a three-game series Sunday with a 7-6 win against Washington.

Oakland won its third consecutive series for the first time since 2021, and the A's did so in spectacular fashion on Sunday. The Athletics overcame a five-run deficit by scoring six times in the sixth inning en route to a 7-6 victory over the Washington Nationals. Abraham Toro's two-run single to left field capped the six-run frame. Oakland's Ross Stripling (0-3, 5.50 ERA) will look to snap a run of eight straight losing decisions on Monday when he gets the start against fellow right-hander and former Athletic Sonny Gray (1-0, 0.00).

The best chance will be Monday through Wednesday at the Coliseum when Crawford comes back to the Bay Area as a reserve shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals, who play a three-game series against the Athletics. “It will be a strange for sure,” said A's pitcher Alex Wood, a former teammate.

The best chance will be Monday through Wednesday at the Coliseum when Crawford comes back to the Bay Area as a reserve shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals, who play a three-game series against the Athletics. “It will be a strange for sure,” said A's pitcher Alex Wood, a former teammate.