Giants Steal Sacramento Minor League Club From A's; Oakland Forced To Partner With Nashville

SACRAMENTO (KCBS) – The Oakland Athletics made it official on Thursday, announcing a four-year player development deal with Triple-A Nashville of the Pacific Coast League. The team's Triple-A home had been in Sacramento the past 15 years, but the River Cats dropped the partnership this week in favor of a union with the Giants.

Oakland will be the seventh Major League team to have an affiliation with the Nashville Sounds since the franchise was established in 1978.

"The Oakland A's are delighted to enter into this new association with Frank Ward and the Nashville Sounds," said Oakland A's General Manager and Vice President Billy Beane. "As we did our due diligence of available Triple-A markets, it became very clear that Nashville was the most attractive. It is a dynamic city and entertainment center with first-rate ownership, a long history of baseball and a location that is convenient for player movement. In addition, we are excited to be part of a new era of Nashville baseball with the 2015 opening of First Tennessee Park."

From 2005-14, the franchise was affiliated with the Milwaukee Brewers. "We are thrilled to begin this new relationship with the A's, who hold an exciting future on both the Major League and Minor League levels," said Frank Ward, owner of the Nashville Sounds. "Oakland has an outstanding track record of success at the Triple-A level. We're looking forward to watching their next tier of stars develop at our state-of-the-art First Tennessee Park."

The San Francisco Giants  have struck a two-year player developmental deal with the River Cats to host their highest level of minor league play. The Giants Triple-A affiliate had been in Fresno since 1998.

"First and foremost, the Giants want to express our sincere appreciation to the Fresno community, in particular to Mayor Ashley Swearengin, the Grizzlies ownership and the fans, for their longtime support of our club," said Giants President and Chief Executive Officer Larry Baer. "It was a difficult decision to move our affiliate, but ultimately we felt that the proximity of the River Cats to San Francisco was critical to the development of our players. We look forward to working with the River Cats organization to continue to deliver a top baseball experience to our players and the fans."

Sacramento Bee Columnist Marcos Breton said the move has big implications for the Giants.

"For the Giants, they are able to move their Triple-A franchise to within 100 miles of AT&T Park. They are able to move their franchise to a hotbed of San Francisco Giants fans," Breton said. "Sacramento remains Giants country and it always has been. So it's a natural fit for them."

"As far as A's fans [in Sacramento], they are not too happy and there is a particular subset of A's fans who are quite unhappy, saying they'll never set foot at Raley Field again, they are saying they are going to burn their River Cat's paraphernalia," he said. "It all seems a bit extreme, but there are strong feelings held by some A's fans towards the Giants."

Meanwhile, the Fresno Grizzlies have entered into a partnership deal with the Houston Astros.

In:
• San Francisco Giants
• Sacramento
• Minor League Baseball
• Oakland A's