Elephant Rumblings: Pitchers and catchers report on February 12

MLB news roundup

Happy Wednesday, Athletics Nation!

2025 is upon us—albeit off to an incendiary start in many places. Thankfully, another MLB season is fast approaching, and the league has begun announcing Spring Training dates.

My first takeaway from this tweet is that ATH is the new OAK, as the A’s are currently without an official, permanent home. If you happen to have just returned from deep space and were hibernating in a cryogenic chamber on your starship, let me catch you up: the A’s have left Oakland and intend to play their home games at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento until 2028, at which point a new, permanent stadium in Las Vegas will be ready, per the organization.

My second takeaway is less upsetting: A’s pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report for their first workout on February 12. That’s less than a month away! The full squad will have their first workout the following Monday, February 17.

The A’s will play their first post-Oakland preseason game against the Padres on Saturday, February 22 at Peoria Sports Complex, the shared Spring Training facility of the Friars and the Athletics’ AL West rivals the Seattle Mariners. The A’s will once again be based at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, AZ, where they will play their first home Spring Training game against the Rockies on February 23.

Young teams like our Athletics are exciting to follow in Spring Training, as having fewer established veterans generally results in more spirited competition for Opening Day roster spots.

Bring on the 2025 season! There’s reason to be hopeful that the A’s will continue to build on the progress that was on display after the 2024 All-Star Break. The A’s played .500 ball during that period, a marked improvement after losing over 100 games in both 2022 and 2023.

A’s Coverage:

• A’s Appear Poised to Sign Two-Way Player From Japan
• A’s Officially Out on Roki Sasaki

MLB News & Interest:

• 2025 Spring Training first workout dates announced
• Baseball Hall of Fame ballots 2025: The Athletic’s voters explain their selections ($)
• How Roki Sasaki’s life, career and outlook were shaped by disaster ($)
• Dodgers To Have Another Meeting With Roki Sasaki
• Twins Promote Three Executives To Assistant GM
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

The face of the New Oakland Athletics.

There’s a new Waldichuk on the scene.