SEATTLE (AP) — When manager Mark Kotsay removed his Oakland jersey for the final time Sunday, it was bound for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Brent Rooker? His final jersey with the name Oakland across the front will be preserved in a frame and displayed on his wall at home.
“That’ll kind of be my thing. The last jersey that says Oakland and the last time you’re representing that city specifically,” Rooker said.
The name Oakland being attached to the Athletics ended on Sunday after the final out of their season finale against the Seattle Mariners, a 6-4 defeat for the A's. When the 2025 season begins, the A’s will still exist — and oddly enough open the year in Seattle — but the name Oakland no longer will be there.
Kotsay, who played four seasons in Oakland and finished his third season as the manager, said it was an honor to be asked to give his final jersey to the Hall of Fame.
“We talked about it on Thursday, the pride that I have of managing this club, of representing the city and the jersey and the front of it being Oakland one last time,” Kotsay said.
The last few weeks have been waves of emotion for those associated with the A’s franchise, hitting a crescendo in the last few days. There was the final home series and final game at the Coliseum in Oakland on Thursday, followed by the final games in Seattle.
There were plenty of fans in green and gold in attendance at T-Mobile Park for the finale, many wearing shirts or holding signs that continued to implore A's ownership to sell the team. No matter which team they were supporting, fans were treated to the surprise of Rickey Henderson throwing out the first pitch in a custom half-A's, half-Mariners jersey.
Before JJ Bleday stepped to the plate for the first at-bat to open the game, a loud chant of “Let's go Oakland,” rung out through the stadium. That chant continued and reached its peak in the ninth inning when it seemed like even the Seattle fans were joining in.
“I think we’ve done a pretty good job of keeping things in perspective and by that I mean making sure that we understand the weight, the gravity of the moment, the situation, and how much it means to a lot of people,” Rooker said. “And doing our best to honor that and to pay homage and respect to everything else to the city of Oakland and the organization, the franchise, the people, the fans, the workers, all the people deserve.”
Like Rooker, Seth Brown intends to hold on to his jersey from the final game. He said knowing what the future looks like, with the A’s relocating to Sacramento for at least three years beginning next season before a planned move to Las Vegas, has been a relief for players.
But that doesn’t minimize the emotional ties that come with the final day as Oakland.
“Every day that you get to put on that uniform is something special and for everybody who puts it on today, it’s kind of one of those things where you got to feel lucky to do what you do and lucky that you get to wear a jersey that says Oakland across the front of it,” Brown said.
Even in the opposing dugout, the thought of the A’s no longer being connected to Oakland was hard to grasp. Seattle manager Dan Wilson played in 109 career games against the A’s and while there was nostalgia when the Mariners visited Oakland earlier this month, the finality of the situation hit on Sunday.
“To have an opportunity to play them for the last time as the Oakland A’s does feel different. It’s a little bit of history passing in a way,” said Wilson, who caught the first pitch from Henderson. “I think anybody that’s around the game can appreciate the history of the game and so when that begins to change, that changes something inside of you, too.”
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb