KCRA, where the non-news comes first

KCRA reported over the weekend that the economic downturn has hurt River Cats ticket sales. “It’s considerably decreased” says Chad Collins, Director of Ticket Sales. “I hope this isn’t an indication of what the rest of the season is going to be,” says Group Events Executive Marie Maita.

Think again. Those quotes are in the story, but they’re actually just courtesy of local residents waiting in line to buy tickets, “reporting” on their memory of what the line was like last year. Seriously. Continue reading “KCRA, where the non-news comes first”

River Cats Championship Caravan coming

Dinger
Dinger by Jachdeja on Flickr

Coaches and players from the AAA Champion River Cats will be making some public appearances this weekend to sign autographs and share the love.

Members of the 2008 Triple-A and Pacific Coast League Champion Sacramento River Cats will say “thank you” to the Sacramento community for their passionate support during the team’s championship run with the River Cats Championship Caravan, Oct. 16-18. River Cats players and coaches, including manager Todd Steverson, team MVP Casey Rogowski and team home run leader Brooks Conrad, and Voice of the River Cats Johnny Doskow, will visit River Cats fans throughout the community and will be available to all media outlets for interview throughout the three days.

The first event is this evening from 5:30-6:30 pm at Raley’s in Natomas (4650 Natomas Blvd.) Autographs, raffle and free cupcakes! Then tonight at 7 pm join players and coaches at Palm Street Pub & Grill in Carmichael (6416 Fair Oaks Blvd) to watch the Red Sox take on the Rays in game 5 of the ALCS.

Continue reading “River Cats Championship Caravan coming”

Ain’t no party like a AAA championship party!

dan meyer, chris denorfia
Dan Meyer, Chris Denorfia

Don’t forget, the PCL Champion River Cats’ season is not over yet. Today Sacramento will play the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (cool team name!) in Oklahoma City for the unofficial AAA championship game, pitting the International League and PCL champions against each other in a one-game “Bricktown showdown.” The River Cats won this game last year, the second year it was played. Because they are the best minor league franchise EVAH.

The game will be on at 5:00 pm on ESPN2. GO CATS!!! Update: Champions!!!

Congratulations Rivercats!

Here’s to the boys in white and black and maroon, who brought in their second Pacific Coast League title in a row. Congratulations go out as well to Carlos Gonzalez and Chris Denorfia who were named co-MVPs of the series.

What makes this feat even more impressive is that this team bears almost no relation to last year’s PCL title team. Because of the A’s penchant for bringing up players to fill the spots of traded-away stars, the ‘Cats roster is almost totally overhauled from last year. Which, of course, means that everyone who runs the team, from the scouts to the coaches to the manager, really deserve the accolades for not only putting together a great group of guys, but also getting the most out of them.

Thank you, Rivercats, for giving us something to cheer about.

Mike Schmidt at Raley Field tomorrow!

Mike... Schmidt, right?Hall of Famer third baseman Mike Schmidt will be making an appearance tomorrow at Raley Field before the River Cats game.

Former Major League third baseman Mike Schmidt will visit Raley Field on Friday, July 18th to help raise awareness of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH), commonly known as enlarged prostate. The Hall of Famer has partnered with Minor League Baseball to launch the national program, “BPH Game Plan Starts with U: Catch the Whole Game,” aimed at urging men to talk to their doctors about annual prostate screenings.

Say it with me: Usin the whole fist there, Dinger?

Fans are invited to meet Schmidt from approximately 7:05 p.m. to 7:50 p.m. on the Foul Ball Patio (left field line) where he will be available to autograph free Mike Schmidt over-sized baseball cards.

Cool!!

Eric Chavez to begin rehab assignment tomorrow

Six-time gold glover Eric Chavez, the Oakland Athletics’ third baseman who has not suited up this year after offseason back surgery, will be making his first appearance in Sacramento wearing River Cats maroon this week. Chavez will take the field in the homestand that starts tomorrow night at 7:05 against the hated Salt Lake Bees. The Cats are tops in their division in this young season, with the second best record in the PCL next to the Bees’ insane .789 winning percentage. The river crew have won 5 out of their last 6. Come on out and cool off with a Dinger costume head sweet freeze!*

*Not available in reality

River Cats home opener tonight!

River CatsTonight at 7:05 the River Cats take the field of Raley for the 2008 season home opener against the hated Las Vegas 51s. The Cats have won 3 straight behind solid hitting, and Dan Meyer looks to get a win in his first start tonight. I’ll be there and will post photos. There is a scheduled non-virtual meetup with Nick Miller who is doing gonzo blogging at River Chat and wrote this great feature on the Cats for SNR.

In preparation you should check the roster because it’s quite different from last year’s. Go Cats!