American League (MLB)

DJ Delgado on the Evolution of Oakland's DJ Scene and Celebrating Five Years of Fresh Jamz

Attending middle school with artists such as Opio, Casual, and Touré of the Hieroglyphics crew in the early '90s, Oakland-born DJ Delgado sought to find his own creative outlet amid the beats and rhymes of hip-hop. He was attracted to "the constant positivity and push for social change" in reggae m ... More >>

Top Five Things Oakland Spokesman MC Hammer Could Do To Improve His Hometown

Oakland, meet your new tourism ambassador: MC Hammer, famous rapper, man of Christ, former A's exec, and purveyor of some very goofy pantaloons. The man born Stanley Burrell was born and raised in East Oakland, so it's only natural that he'd by tapped by the city for a new campaign to counter its ra ... More >>

World Series Game 2: It's Such a Perfect Day

Tell someone you like long walks on the beach and you'll seldom be asked to explain why. Mention you like baseball, however, and you maybe put on the spot. Well, maybe you like baseball because of days like Thursday. Game 2 of the World Series was an old-fashioned, grind-it-out pitcher's duel with t ... More >>

World Series: Justin Verlander, Thou Art Mortal

There's a moment toward the end of the great old movie The Man Who Would Be King where Sean Connery's character has nearly conned an Afghan tribe into believing that he's a God. But, just at the wrong moment, he's cut -- and blood trickles from his wound. Seeing this, the tribe's elder cries that Co ... More >>

San Francisco Giants 2012 World Series Prop Bets

It's been a thrilling playoff run for the Giants. So much so that, by now, many fans may be numb to basic ebbs and flows of a baseball game. For those needing an extra jolt, here are some totally arbitrary prop bets for the 2012 World Series:

Obama Says He Kinda Hopes the Tigers Win the World Series

President Obama appeared on the Tonight Show last night where he admitted that he's leaning toward rooting for the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. And what a real slap in the face this is to San Francisco, which has practically bankrolled his 2012 presidential campaign.His words exactly:"I will ... More >>

World Series: St. Louis Media Praises Giants Fans, Detroit Columnist Bemoans "Wimpy" Gourmets

In the latest iteration of a tired tradition, a newspaper from the country's heartland has dispatched a writer playing the part of "Unfrozen Caveman Sports Columnist" to San Francisco. Once arrived on our decadent shores, he's labeled our fans as a bunch of gourmet-munching softies, used coded langu ... More >>

San Francisco Giants 2012 World Series Drinking Game

Seeing-eye singles, elimination games, Madison Bumgarner. In Giants baseball, before the joy comes the anguish and anxiety. If San Francisco wins the World Series, you already know it'll be a teeth-grinding, knee-shaking, hair-pulling operation. If the Giants lose, it'll just suck. See also: 10 Way ... More >>

San Francisco Giants: Wet Wish Fulfillment

In the last few short years, San Francisco Giants fans have been treated to every experience they could have ever hoped to have. Last night, however, was a new one. If you ever dreamed of watching a nigh-impossible comeback capped during a torrential rainstorm -- well, there you go. Last night' ... More >>

Detroit Tigers Fans' Thoughts on the Giants

Fandom is, naturally, a partisan affair. No team has more heart than the Giants! Marco Scutaro is the hottest hitter in baseball! Defense, base running, and timely hitting are the keys to victory in October! Angel Pagan should be on the cover of a romance novel! Most of us have been following the G ... More >>

Giants Must Channel the Comeback Spirit of 1921

It's not looking good."The Giants are on the verge of elimination," wrote the Contra Costa Times' Alex Pavlovic. "They are going, going, going ... and they probably aren't coming back," mused the Merc's Tim Kawakami. "Doomsday Tuesday," proclaimed the Chron's Scott Ostler.Indeed, down 0-2, with the ... More >>

Oakland's Ballpark Is More Veggie-Friendly Than San Francisco's

Some vegetarian baseball fans out there might have been surprised to read the news in the Chronicle today that noted San Francisco's AT&T Park is no longer the most veggie-friendly baseball stadium in the country. In fact, we're not even on the top 10. And to add insult to injury, Oakland outdid ... More >>

Lost Boys of Summer: Some Ex-Ballplayers Seek Help From MLB

Bragging Rights

Manny Ramirez in Oakland: Savor the Possibilities

The half-million dollar man...​Back in the days of yore, Jon Lovitz had a Saturday Night Live bit in which he pitched himself to "single women in their 30s" with the plea "Lower your standards!" Fast-forwarding several decades, the Oakland A's signed erratic, potential fortysomething, busted stero ... More >>

Sorry, Simba Moneyball is King of the Jungle

Jackpot​Back in 1994, The Lion King's Simba gave his competitors fair warning via song -- "I'm gonna be a mighty king, so enemies beware" -- but that didn't stop Moneyball from dominating San Francisco's box office this weekend. In fact, you could say it was a home run for the Oakland A's baseball ... More >>

"Moneyball": Formula Works for Sabermetrics Sports Flick

Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie Stop in Oakland Tonight

​Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, the Hollywood power couple better know as "Brangelina," will be in downtown Oakland tonight for Pitt's premiere of Moneyball, a flim based on the Oakland A's 2002 season.

Barbecue Championship Haiku Contest Winners

​San Francisco knows haiku. We had 41 entries in our haiku contest to win tickets to the Bay Area BBQ Championship on Saturday, and many of them were great. No wonder, with a great prize: three $48 tickets, which include five food/drink tickets for each person at the BBQ championship, and thr ... More >>

Win Barbecue and Baseball Tickets in Our Haiku Contest

​We've got three $48 tickets to the Bay Area BBQ Championship on Saturday, July 16, and we're going to give them away! The 'cue will be cookin' at the Oakland Coliseum before a doubleheader between the Oakland Athletics and the Los Angeles Angels of Disneyland. The lucky winner gets three pas ... More >>

U2's Giant Spider Show Pops a Noisy, Well-Attended Squat in Oakland

Christopher VictorioU2 in Oakland last night.​ U2 Lenny Kravitz Moonalice June 7, 2011 @ O.co Coliseum [The venue formerly known as the Oakland Coliseum] Better than: Watching a U2 concert DVD with the volume really high while standing outside with 70,000 other people. (But actually, that's e ... More >>

Baseball Beer Prices -- Cheers to the Giants!

Smiles at $6 a pop...​Nouveau Giants fans unaccustomed to adversity may have been left weeping into their beers by the team's disappointing opening series. But, in addition to the reassuring notion that a World Series pennant is fluttering over AT&T Park, San Francisco aficionados can cry prou ... More >>

It Takes a Lot of Balls

Sunday: Oakland Rapper Too $hort Makes His Fillmore District Debut at Yoshi's

Tamara PalmerMartin Luther and Too $hort.​Too $hort March 6, 2011 @ Yoshi's SFBetter than: Listening to a studio gangster who's behind closed doors getting his booty all spanked up.He staked a permanent place for Oakland on the international rap map over a more than 25-year career, but T ... More >>

A Postcard from the Future

Or, how 2011 was the year everything changed in music.

Giants To Be Honored -- By Congress?

Sadly, the Congressional bill congratulating the Giants does not make mention of 'The Machine'​Congressional Bill: "Whereas the rest of the country learned to 'fear the beard'" Rep. Nancy Pelosi -- you've heard of her -- yesterday introduced a Congressional bill "Congratulating the San Francisco G ... More >>

Will Hideki Matsui Bring Porn Collection to Oakland?

Here's a Hideki Matsui-related image we can show you...​The imminent possibility of the Oakland A's signing Hideki "Godzilla" Matsui could certainly fill some holes in the Athletics' lineup. We'll refrain from recycling the above phrase to make the obvious pun regarding Matsui's other claim to fam ... More >>

Jean Quan: 'Plum Purple Is My Color'

Jean Quan loves the color purple...​Last week we noticed that Oakland Mayor-to-be Jean Quan seemed to be wearing the same purple suit in just about every photograph. Is this her lucky suit? Or is purple just her thing? The answer: Yes. Quan confirmed to SF Weekly that "plum purple is my color." Bu ... More >>

World Series: Make Your Best 'Walker, Texas Ranger' Jokes. But Make 'Em Fast.

After the Rangers bullpen issued four consecutive free passes to the Giants in a 7-run eighth, this phrase has taken on a whole new meaning​The San Francisco Giants are not running on all cylinders. They are running on cylinders we didn't even know they had. If you're even a marginal fan, you know ... More >>

World Series: The Look-Alikes Edition

This may explain the misplays in right field...​Everything that could be said about the World Series has pretty much been said. The Giants have done no wrong, they're in a commanding spot, but things can change quickly. So we feel entitled to bring up that, yes, Vlad Guerrero is a dead ringer for ... More >>

World Series: Game 1 Leaves Fans Thrilled -- and Nervous

Eric GolubGame 1 viewed from the Willie McCovey statue on the far side of McCovey Cove​A Giants fan is always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Because, with this team, the other shoe always drops. I can't speak for the hordes of orange-clad people inundating our city -- though, as a long-suffer ... More >>

World Series: Actual Odds For Amazingly Stupid Bets

​Those who squander their hard-earned cash on food and heat rather than gambling it away may not know what a prop bet is. It's not a wager on, say, Yorick's skull or the gun Chekhov saw fit to hang on the wall.  Rather, it's a proposition bet -- or side bet -- on something seemingly chancy an ... More >>

KTVU Goes Low-Tech to Solve 'Clockgate'

What time is it? ​Back when Charlie Finley owned the Oakland A's, an underling was often tasked with keeping the legendarily unpleasant executive abreast of the team's progress. This was accomplished via the low-tech, but effective, method of attaching a telephone to a radio with a rubber band so ... More >>

Brian Wilson's Orange Shoes, and Baseball's Worst Fashion Faux-Pas

Brian -- you shouldn't have! ​Yesterday, San Francisco Giants pitcher Brian Wilson -- a man with about three pounds worth of tattoo ink coursing through his veins and a haircut befitting a Blink-182 roadie -- came under fire from the league office. The objection: Wilson's traffic cone-orange shoes ... More >>

U2 Reschedules Oakland Concert to 2011

"See you in 2011, Oakland"​You may resume breathing, disappointed Bay Area U2 fans: Bono and company are coming back. But not until next year. As you no doubt remember, U2 had to cancel last month's Oakland show due to the sunglassed singer's emergency back surgery. Tour promoter Live Nation annou ... More >>

Wanna Star in 'Moneyball' Alongside Brad Pitt? Here's Your Chance.

That's Brad on the right...​You know what? The Curious Case of Benjamin Button kinda sucked. Here's your chance to potentially relay just this information to Brad Pitt while appearing in a movie that may well not suck. The makers of the forthcoming Moneyball, the big-screen adaptation of Michael L ... More >>

Clumsy Attempts to Smuggle Booze Into A's Games Actually Benefit Needy Kids

​The other day, we queried the San Francisco Giants about the fate of the cans and bottles of libations seized by stadium employees from hapless fans entering the stadium. It turns out the answer is about as thrilling as the team's play of late: They pour them out and recycle them. Across the bay ... More >>

What Do Giants Do With Booze You Tried To Sneak In?

​A New Yorker cartoon from the days of yore depicted a burglar, large bag of swag over his shoulder, jauntily tipping his cap at a startled woman sitting up in bed. In the caption, he nonchalantly explained that today's economic conditions had forced many a small businessman into alternative means ... More >>

Friday Night: How Could Erykah Badu Possibly Seem Exciting After Janelle Monae?

Tom FergusonErykah Badu​Erykah Badu Janelle Monae @The Paramount Theatre, Oakland June 17, 2010 Better than: Watching old Michael Jackson videos on repeat. (Well, maybe not.) There were seats all the way up to the front of the stage at the Paramount last night, and at first they seemed silly: A ... More >>

Perfect Games -- Even Imperfect Ones -- Occurring Eerily Often

But for an umpire's imperfect call with two outs in the ninth, Detroit's Armando Galarraga would have had a perfect game today. Roy Halladay of Philadelphia tossed one just last month, as did the Oakland Athletics' Dallas Braden. Two in a month! Mark Buehrle hurled one last year, and, tragically, if ... More >>

If You Didn't Get Tix to Giants Brewfest, There's Always Next Week in Oakland

francobobfred II/FlickrSummer essential: Chugging beer in some stadium parking lot.​The only thing more exciting than the prospect of a series the Giants can actually sweep (vs. the cellar-dwelling D'backs) is great, free-ish beer beforehand in the form of Saturday's first annual Giants Brewfe ... More >>

The rise and fall of an Internet sensation

Former Oakland A's Fan Fave Eric Byrnes Earning $11M to Play Beer-League Softball

Now batting for the Dutch Goose softball squad...​You could say Eric Byrnes was demoted -- but that's a very un-dude way of looking at things. The former Oakland Athletic-turned journeyman left his pro baseball career with both a bang and a whimper this week. After, for lack of better words, fucki ... More >>

Giants Allow One Hit, Lose: A Historically Frustrating Day for Jonathan Sanchez

Tough luck, kid. But you've got company...​Jonathan Sanchez' mother told him there'd be days like this. For the first time in the 52-year history of the San Francisco Giants, the team allowed one, stinkin' hit -- and lost the game. The team dropped a 1-0 contest last night at San Diego. Sanchez st ... More >>

Extreme Bargain Hunting at Giants Dugout Store

​When a big-, moderate-, or even small-time Giants player washes out, it's bad news for him and his fans. But for you -- it's a bargain in disguise. We've written in the past about the team's dugout store marking outfielder Marquis Grissom's paraphernalia down to the price of a breakfast snack the ... More >>

Maverick Chef's Baseball-Themed Hot Sauce Scores Home Run

Youk's Hot Sauce​We discovered Youk's Hot Sauce as an added option to our treasured Mariquita Mystery Box last week. Turns out it's a collaboration between the farm of the local culinary stars (from Alice to Zuni), Maverick chef Scott Youkilis, and his baseball star of a bro, Boston Red Sox ba ... More >>

Stealing bases and talking balls at Thieves Tavern

Say-It-Ain't-So Joe

Why does Joe Morgan -- the best second baseman in history and a prominent TV broadcaster -- hate Moneyball? And Billy Beane and his Oakland A's? And you, too, if you think the statistical revolution that's overwhelmed Major League Baseball has any

You Shouldn't Go Hungry

East Coast West Delicatessen