ReportWire

Tag: Oracle Park

  • Rockies drop another heartbreaker to Giants in 118th loss

    SAN FRANCISCO — Slow starters all season, the Rockies got out of the gate fast on Saturday afternoon at sun-splashed Oracle Park.

    First inning: bang, solo home run by catcher Hunter Goodman, his 31st of the season. Second inning: bang, leadoff homer by Brenton Doyle, his 15th. The Rockies led 2-0 against Giants right-hander Justin Verlander.

    But, as usual, the Rockies found a way to lose, or couldn’t figure out how to win. Take your pick.

    The Giants had only four hits, but it was enough to win, 4-3, and send the Rockies to their 118th loss of the season.

    The Rockies, per usual, rallied late. Jordan Beck led off the ninth with a home run off reliever Ryan Walker, cutting the lead to 4-3. Doyle followed with a double and Kyle Karros drew a walk. Warming Bernable struck out for the second out of the inning, but right-handed reliever Spencer Bivens plunked Ryan Ritter, loading the bases.

    In the penultimate game of their painful season, the Rockies were on the cusp of one of their most satisfying wins of the season. But Ezequiel Tovar’s foul ball down the third baseline was caught against the netting by Matt Chapman.

    It was a bitter end to a well-played game.

    Patrick Saunders

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  • Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman made huge strides behind the plate in 2025

    SAN FRANCISCO — Hunter Goodman rakes.

    His skills at the plate made him the Rockies’ lone All-Star and produced the best offensive season by a catcher in franchise history. Proof is in the numbers: his 30 home runs, 147 hits, 62 extra-base hits, and 90 RBIs are all the most in a season for a Rockies’ primary catcher.

    Goodman’s skills behind the plate and his growth as a game caller and student of the game are not as easily measured. But the Rockies say the 25-year-old has made huge strides since the club turned him into a full-time catcher in spring training.

    “Overall, it’s been seen by people throughout the league that ‘Goody’ has become an everyday starting catcher who produces offensively, but I see him turning into a great defensive catcher,” veteran left-hander Kyle Freeland said Friday before the Rockies played the Giants at Oracle Park to begin their final series of the 2025 season.

    “I think how he’s grown behind the dish speaks volumes about his ability to learn, adjust, and do things on the fly, very quickly, has been impressive.”

    Some of Goodman’s improved defensive skills, particularly his ability to block balls in the dirt, are apparent. Interim manager Warren Schaeffer calls it “exceptional.”

    Goodman still has a way to go in throwing out base stealers, as his low 16% caught-stealing rate shows. However, the more subtle aspects of Goodman’s all-around game — pitch calling, receiving, and knowledge of opposing hitters — have been impressive.

    “The start of this season feels like a long time ago,” Goodman said. “I didn’t feel all that comfortable back there, to be honest with you. But as the season has gone on, I think the progress has been really good. Whether it’s blocking, receiving or throwing, I think it’s gone in the right direction.”

    Schaeffer, Freeland and Goodman all say that Goodman’s growth as a game-caller has steadily improved as the season has gone on. However, Goodman said he has made the most progress with pitch framing.

    “I’ve spent a lot of time working on receiving, or pitch framing, whatever you want to call it,” he said. “I worked really hard on that during the offseason and during spring training. I really wanted to clean some of that stuff up.”

    Patrick Saunders

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  • Lawmakers approve renaming I-80 in SF to honor Giants legend Willie Mays

    Lawmakers approve renaming I-80 in SF to honor Giants legend Willie Mays

    Fans reflect on memories of Willie Mays at celebration of life held at Oracle Park


    Fans reflect on memories of Willie Mays at celebration of life held at Oracle Park

    03:11

    A stretch of Interstate 80 in San Francisco will be renamed after Giants legend Willie Mays, after the California Legislature approved a resolution last week.

    Lawmakers approved Senate Concurrent Resolution 169 by State Sens. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) and Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) which renames a portion of the roadway “Willie Mays Highway” after the baseball Hall of Famer, who died in June at the age of 93. Introduced in the legislature last month, Dodd said the measure had numerous co-sponsors, including fans of the rival Los Angeles Dodgers.

     “This is an absolute homerun,” Dodd said in a statement Sunday. “Willie Mays endeared himself to generations of San Francisco Giants fans, including myself, so naming a street near the ballpark after him is the perfect tribute.”

    Wiener said, “He broke barriers as one of the first Black players in Major League Baseball, empowering generations of athletes to follow their dreams. It’s only right that we honor him publicly, in the community he loved, and I’m thrilled to present this resolution to do so.”

    Known as the “Say Hey Kid”, Mays is widely regarded as one of the greatest baseball players of all-time. During his 23 seasons in major leagues, most of them with the New York and San Francisco Giants, Mays was named an All-Star 24 times and won the 1954 World Series with the Giants.

    Beginning his career in the Negro Leagues in Alabama, Mays was among the first Black players to be called up to the majors, being named the NL Rookie of the Year in 1951. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979 and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.

    According to Dodd’s office, the stretch of roadway that is being renamed includes where the Bay Bridge enters San Francisco to near Oracle Park. Signs would be paid for by private funding.

    “Now generations to come will travel along Willie Mays Highway on the way to watch the Giants while the all-time great in a No. 24 jersey is beaming down from heaven at a grateful city,” Dodd said.

    Tim Fang

    Tim Fang is a digital producer at CBS Bay Area. A Bay Area native, Tim has been a part of the CBS Bay Area newsroom for two decades and joined the digital staff in 2006.

    Tim Fang

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  • Running-averse man commits to monthly half-marathons for a good cause

    Running-averse man commits to monthly half-marathons for a good cause

    SAN FRANCISCO — Sunday morning marked the 15th annual running of “The Giant Race,” a 5K, 10K and half-marathon beginning and ending at Oracle Park on the San Francisco waterfront. Among the thousands of participants was a young man running to help exploited children and he did it with a symbolic twist.

    Grant Clark loves his job so much that, for it, he’s willing to do something he hates.

    “I always hate running,” he said. “I hated running growing up so I started this ten months ago just to try it out, do something new and push myself a little bit.”

    The 24-year-old works for an organization based in the Bay Area called “Special Operations Finding Kids,” which hires private investigators to help find and retrieve children being trafficked for sexual exploitation. To raise money and awareness, Clark has committed to run a half-marathon each month for the rest of the year but he’s adding an extra challenge — he runs with his hands tied together to symbolize kids being held captive.

    “It’s a life sentence for these children, having gone through that trauma because it sticks with them forever,” Clark said. “And for me to run with my hands tied is really a small challenge compared to what they have to do throughout their life.”

    Grant Clark runs a half-marathon in San Francisco.

    KPIX


    On Sunday, it was the Giant Race half-marathon. With his friend Carter Young acting as a pace buddy, Clark began the 12.1-mile trek along the city’s waterfront. It was his sixth run, including races in Miami, Los Angeles and San Diego.

    “This running path has taken me down a road I never thought I’d be on,” Clark said. “It’s kind of surreal, obviously, having my family here supporting me, having someone run with me. It’s all — I’m very blessed for that.”

    While his parents give their full support, his father, Jeff Clark, said they’re also concerned about the psychological burden their son may be carrying in combatting such a dark practice as human trafficking.

    “From my perspective as a father, clearly I’m very proud about it and it worries me a bit, too because it’s such an emotional issue,” he said. “I can’t imagine the toll that it takes from you when you see stories constantly and now your son’s involved in these stories, trying to help out in a good way. But still, you know, the pressure’s there.”

    Clark is motivated by the pressure he puts on himself and, as he entered the ballpark and crossed the finish line, he was thankful that, for him, escaping bondage was as simple as untying a piece of rope.

    “When I first put the video out saying I was going to do this whole initiative it was a little scary because I never ran more than two miles in my life,” Clark said. “Now we’re on number six so it feels good. I mean, every day brings a new gift. I’m very blessed to be in the position I’m in and just excited to continue doing it.”

    Now, it’s on to the next run, as he continues his mission to find joy in doing something he hates.

    Clark’s goal is to raise $75,000 for “Special Operations Finding Kids” by the end of the year. For more information go to: http://findingkids.org.

    John Ramos

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  • Fans gather at Willie Mays Plaza at Oracle Park to remember Giants legend

    Fans gather at Willie Mays Plaza at Oracle Park to remember Giants legend

    SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) — Tributes of all sounds and meaning poured into Willie Mays Plaza at Oracle Park in San Francisco to commemorate the passing — and legacy — of its namesake, Willie Mays, who died Tuesday.

    Fans, including Carrie Brandon, stopped by the statue of the Say Hey Kid to pay their respects and reflect on the impact he had on each person passing through.

    “I was born and bred a Giants fan, coming to games since I was seven years old,” she told CBS News Bay Area. “For me, at my age it’s hard to imagine living in a world that he’s not here, but it means to much to have his statue and his legacy as part of the Bay Area.”

    Lauren Toms

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