OAKLAND – The image of fireworks lighting up the sky over Greenman Field in Oakland is still bright in Nico Hoerner’s memory.
As a kid, the Cubs second baseman always looked forward to playing night games at the fields a few blocks from the Coliseum. And none was more epic than 10-year-old Hoerner’s Mustangs taking on their rival, the Bulldogs, as the A’s firework show turned the scene into something straight out of ‘The Sandlot’ movie.
This week, as the Cubs’ first west coast road trip of the year swings through Oakland, Hoerner will play at the Coliseum for the first time in his major league career. Up until a couple weeks ago, Hoerner had never faced an AL West team. But the new, more balanced schedule is bringing him back to his hometown.
“I think it’s awesome just seeing all the talent in the league,” Hoerner said in a conversation with the Sun-Times. “... It’s exciting to go new places, it’s exciting to see new players, it keeps the season fresh, you still see your division opponents plenty.”
For Hoerner, it also means playing in front of a robust cheering section in Oakland, full of his family, friends, little league and high school coaches.
“It’s cool to be able to share that in a place that I grew up and have a lot of memories,” Hoerner said.
Hoerner was only two or three years old, he estimates, when he first attended an A’s game at the Coliseum. His family would go on Wednesdays, when the A’s held their $2 ticket, $1 hot dog promotion.
He’d go early to watch batting practice and see stars from other teams. He witnessed plenty of Ichiro Suzuki and Manny Ramírez batting practice homers.
In high school, Hoerner was there when Coco Crisp hit that walk-off single to win Game 4 of the A’s 2012 American League Division Series against the Tigers, sending the series to a fifth game.
“Everyone hung out at the game for like 30 minutes afterwards,” Hoerner said. “No one cleared, and everyone’s just celebrating.”
The A’s 55-year tenure at the Oakland Coliseum is nearing a close. The team’s lease expires after the 2024 season, and stories of sewage leaks, feral cats, broken seats and an opossum in the visitor’s television booth have plagued the stadium for years. But in an ongoing saga, it’s still unclear whether the team will successfully work with the city to make plans for a new waterfront ballpark in Oakland a reality, or relocate to Las Vegas.
“The A’s have had talks about the stadium since I can remember,” Hoerner said.
If the A’s do end up in Las Vegas, their move will complete the rapid exodus of major professional sports teams. The Warriors crossed the bay for a new stadium in San Francisco in 2019. The Raiders left for Las Vegas in 2020.
“It’s an organization that’s had a lot of success, and it’s not what you want to see,” Hoerner said of the A’s, who have won nine World Series titles and entered Monday with the sixth-best winning percentage since 2000 despite a recent free fall. “And a lot of people are really proud to be from Oakland and excited to have a team that represents that.”
Hoerner returned to his hometown to face that team on a hot streak. He entered the game with a .333 batting average and eight stolen bases, tied for the most in MLB.
There was no fireworks show on the A’s promotional schedule for the series, but Monday’s game was still one to remember.