The Athletics will experience a change in climate when they begin playing games in Sacramento, but MLB commissioner Rob Manfred recently revealed how the league will help the team beat the heat in its transition from Oakland.
"We are obviously aware and concerned about the player health and safety issues," Manfred told the San Francisco Chronicle's John Shea on Tuesday, noting that the league and MLB Players Association are working "so that a vast, vast majority of the games can be played at night when it’s cooler.”
Manfred's comments came during the annual Baseball Writers’ Association of America luncheon shortly before Tuesday night’s All-Star Game, and just a couple of days after MLBPA chief Tony Clark expressed concerns to Shea about the A's playing on artificial turf in Sacramento's triple-digit temperatures.
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“The world of turf is different these days. As it’s been shared with me, there are 14, 15, 16 different types of turf,” Clark told Shea on Saturday at the All-Star Futures Game. “Now having said that, it’s going to be important to take the heat into account. As we have our dialogue with the league and we talk about scheduling and health and safety as it relates to the players, there may need to be adjustments with regard to games’ start times.
“It’s important to acknowledge 106 degrees is still 106 degrees and a day game is going to resonate much differently than a late-morning game or an evening game if you’re going to be able to get on the field once the sun goes down. Those are all conversations that are ongoing and we are fully aware of.”
Manfred told Shea that a turf has been chosen for Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, where the A's will play at least three seasons from 2025 to 2027 as they await their new Las Vegas home, and the playing surface is similar to that which is used in several MLB ballparks in Arizona, Miami, Tampa Bay and Arlington -- all stadiums with roofs.
The B1K turf uses a "natural, sustainable infill called Geofill, which is made from coconut husks and fibers," according to its website, and Sacramento will add an ecosport proplay shock pad, per Shea. The additions are part of the many planned upgrades at Sutter Health Park in order to get the Triple-A stadium ready for major-league games.
Oakland Athletics
“We think that’s the best we can do in terms of playing surface in the heat with respect to day games,” Manfred told Shea.
And while MLB and the union work on scheduling more night games for the A's in Sacramento, a number of day games will be unavoidable. Sunday games will need to be played during the day due to MLB’s exclusive network broadcast window, and day games could occur during the week on necessary getaway days.
“In terms of constructing the schedule, we were very careful to try to limit the distances that would have to be traveled by clubs from Sacramento on getaway days and the hope we could get some flexibility on that getaway-day issue,” Manfred told Shea.
“All of the conversations on the effects side of Sacramento have been focused on player safety and health issues, and we think we have the best possible plan to mitigate the heat issues there are as a result of the climate in Sacramento.”