White Sox get the message on Robin Ventura’s “big-boy pants” comment

By Jun 25, 2014, 12:48 PM EDT
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BALTIMORE — Robin Ventura doesn’t speak out a lot so Adam Eaton knows when he does he should listen.

So when the White Sox manager said his team, losers of five straight, need to put on their “big-boy pants” after Monday’s loss, Eaton understands. The White Sox aren’t playing a particularly bad brand of baseball — far from 2013 levels, in fact. But they need more after losing every game on this road trip by a combined total of seven runs, Eaton said.

“He says stuff for a purpose,” Eaton said. “He doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t say anything and then when he does say something people listen. I think it’s definitely for a purpose and to get us fired up and I think we’re going to take that, play with a purpose (Tuesday) and hopefully continue to do so.”

Following Monday’s 6-4 loss on a walk-off, three-run homer, Ventura was displeased with his club. He doesn’t like how they have found several ways to lose some very winnable games on their road trip.

“Baseball’s tough,” Ventura said. “You’ve got to put your big-boy pants on and go out there and win a game. That’s a fact.”

[MORE: Sox make a switch in rotation, stand by Belisario]

Second baseman Gordon Beckham knows where Ventura’s coming from. If it were a blowout, the White Sox would be more prone to letting go of their losses easier knowing they had been beat, Beckham said.

But that’s not the case at all and that’s why Beckham figures Ventura sent the missive in Monday’s postgame comments.

“I feel like we really haven’t gotten beat,” Beckham said. “Obviously we’re losing games but we’re kind of beating ourselves in terms of not finding a way to win.

“We just need to find a way to get a win here and break up this skid we’re on. We’ve played hard, we just haven’t found a way to win. I think his point is we just need to get over the hump here. We’re in these games and if we’re in these games we need to find a way to win one or two of them. It’s never fun to go through it, but this season is too long, this game is too tough to ride the low or ride the high too much. You’ve just got to go out there and play and grind it out.”

New bill to build Athletics stadium on Las Vegas Strip caps Nevada’s cost at $380 million

Associated PressMay 27, 2023, 12:14 PM EDT
D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports
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CARSON CITY, Nev. — A bill introduced in the Nevada Legislature would give the Oakland Athletics up to $380 million for a potential 30,000 seat, $1.5 billion retractable roof stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The bulk of the public funding would come from $180 million in transferable tax credits from the state and $120 million in county bonds, which can vary based on interest rate returns. Clark County also would contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

The A’s have been looking for a home to replace Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City for the 1968 season. The team had sought to build a stadium in Fremont, San Jose and finally the Oakland waterfront, all ideas that never materialized.

The plan in the Nevada Legislature won’t directly raise taxes. It can move forward with a simply majority vote in the Senate and Assembly. Lawmakers have a little more than a week to consider the proposal before they adjourn June 5, though it could be voted on if a special session is called.

The Athletics have agreed to use land on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, where the Tropicana Las Vegas casino resort sits. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has said he is disappointed the team didn’t negotiate with Oakland as a “true partner.”

Las Vegas would be the fourth home for a franchise that started as the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-54. It would become the smallest TV market in Major League Baseball and the smallest market to be home to three major professional sports franchises.

The team and Las Vegas are hoping to draw from the nearly 40 million tourists who visit the city annually to help fill the stadium. The 30,000-seat capacity would make it the smallest MLB stadium.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet June 13-15 in New York.

The plan faces an uncertain path in the Nevada Legislature. Democratic leaders said financing bills, including for the A’s, may not go through if Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoes the five budget bills, which he has threatened to do as many of his priorities have stalled or faded in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Under the bill, the Clark County Board of Commissioners would create a homelessness prevention and assistance fund along the stadium’s area in coordination with MLB and the Nevada Resort Association. There, they would manage funds for services, including emergency rental and utility assistance, job training, rehabilitation and counseling services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The lease agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority would be up for renewal after 30 years.

Nevada’s legislative leadership is reviewing the proposal, Democratic state Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager said in a statement.

“No commitment will be made until we have both evaluated the official proposal and received input from interested parties, including impacted community members,” Yeager said.