Former Oakland A's & San Francisco Giants All Star Vida Blue throws 1st Pitch @ Pacifics
Former San Francisco Giants pitchers Bill Laskey and Vida Blue throw out the first pitch at San Rafael Pacifics game at historic Albert Park in San Rafael, California.
Katie Garibaldi Sings National Anthem @ San Rafael Pacifics Game
Locally based Bay Area singer/songwriter Katie Garibaldi sings the National Anthem at Albert Park for the San Rafael Pacifics baseball team July 27, 2017.
Visit the artist's official website at
Pittsburg Diamonds vs Sonoma Stompers pro Baseball August 31, 2017
FINAL SCORE: Stompers 5 - Diamonds 4
TEAM ROSTERS:
Diamonds
1 Jose Garcia
2 Ordomar Valdez-Martinez
3 Michael Gunn
4 Joe Mello
6 Joseph Randazzo
7 J.J. Wagner
8 Zack Rapacz
9 Brett Solano
10 Javier Marticorona
12 BJ Guinn
13 Wes Wallace
15 Travis Blackley
16 Skylar Shaw-Fuss
17 Joe Lewis
18 Kevin Farly
19 Jordan Brink
21 Dennis Neal
22 Corey McDonald
24 Vinny Guglietti
26 Sam Agnew-Wieland
29 Gerald Bautista
30 Justin Lawrence
31 Aaron Miles
32 Alex McKeon
33 Jose Conseco
34 Yiecok Calderon
36 Dakota Freese
Rickey Shafer
Stompers:
1 Matt Hibbert
3 Matt LoCoco
4 Marcus Bradley
5 Masa Miyadera
6 Daniel Comstock
7 Joel Carranza
8 Yuki Yasuda
9 Juan Espinosa
11 DJ Sharabi
12 Brennan Metzger
13 Taylor Thurber
14 Scott David
15 Derrick Fox
16 Stacy Piagno
18 Zach Wendorf
19 Mike Jackson Jr.
21 Erik Gonsalves
22 Logan Espinosa
24 Jacob Cox
25 Isaac Wenrich
27 Dominic Topoozian
30 Scott Plaza
35 TyRelle Harris
44 Daniel Baptista
TELEVISION PRODUCTION CREW:
CCTV, CONTRA COSTA TELEVISION
MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA
CHRIS VERDUGO
SENIOR PRODUCER, ENGINEER
RONN CARTER
DIRECTOR, TECHNICAL DIRECTOR, CAMERA 4 & PRODUCER
DOMINICK MYERS
REPLAY
ISAAC NORMAN
CG OPERATOR
NICK PATAGUE
DIAMONDS SCOREKEEPER
CAMERAS
WOLFGANG KELLNER
TIM BANKS
CARL MASON
ANNOUNCERS
ANTHONY SCHULTZ
CHRISTIANA ALTIMARI
NETWORK ASSOCIATE
KHURRAM SHAH
OWNER OF THE DIAMONDS
JENNIFER DURBIN
HEAD OF MARKETING, DIAMONDS
LAURA WRIGHT
CITY OF PITTSBURG
PROMOTIONAL CONSIDERATION SPONSORED BY:
WINTER CHEVROLET HONDA
IN N OUT BURGER
NEW MECCA CAFE
SUTTER DELTA MEDICAL CENTER
TAILGATERS SPORTS BAR AND GRILL
CROSKEY REAL ESTATE
LUMPY’S DINER
MT. DIABLO RECYCLING CENTER
THE ALARM GUYS
ALL STAR FORD
DELTA BOWL
HAMPTON BY HILTON
LITTLE J’S
MESA, OUTDOOR ADVERTISING STRUCTURES
PERKS SPORTS ACADEMY
DELTA DIABLO
ALL COUNTIES TOW
DIANN’S EMBROIDERY & GRAPHICS
PAYLESS BATTING CAGES, CONCORD
DR. GERALD ORANJE, CHIROPRACTOR
Man living dream with 1st pitch at Sam Lynn Ballpark
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) - Thursday was opening night at Sam Lynn Ballpark, and the Bakersfield Blaze started off their season against the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.
But, for one man, it’s not about the game or the beginning of the season. It’s about the beginning of his journey, a quest to become the first blind man to throw the first pitch and sing the National Anthem at every minor and major league ballpark in the United States.
Now, if you’ve gone to a baseball game, you’ve probably seen a lot of ceremonial first pitches.
Some of them are celebrities. We’ve seen President Barack Obama try to make it past home plate. We’ve also seen some pretty bad bloopers.
But, none of them were blindfolded.
Robert F. Smith’s ceremonial first pitch isn’t supposed to be a blooper. It’s supposed to be the first step into making it into the history books.
The thing about Sam Lynn Ballpark is that it’s one of the only stadiums in the world built where the sun sets in the batters eyes, because the park faces west.
That makes no difference to Smith, and it’s not just because he’s on the mound. It’s because the sunglasses he wears aren’t coming off.
“Just because you're blind doesn't mean you can't do anything,” he said.
Smith is already booked for 19 out of the 20 minor league parks in California. He has a ways to go, but he thinks it’ll only take about three years to complete.
He also wants to perform 1 million acts of kindness along the way.
“You guys can say you're the first,” said Smith. “This is what the world really needs. It just needs 'L - O - V - E,' that four letter word. That's what my father taught me.”
Robert Smith’s dad is Grammy-winner O.C. Smith. The name of his campaign is “Little Green Apples,” named after his dad’s hit song.
He’s just lucky enough to inherit his dad’s voice, and he proved it by singing the National Anthem.
Singing may come easy, but pitching is difficult. He hasn’t ever even seen one.
“It could be a good pitch,” said Dane Compton, one of the kids in the stands, not knowing what to expect. “It could be a bad pitch. It could be a normal pitch.”
That’s why Smith has been practicing.
“You're not used to winding up. It's just not something that a blind person usually does in life,” he said. “Literally I didn't even know how to throw 15 feet.”
Well, that’s not exactly encouraging.
“I was a little dude,” said Smith. “I only weighed 1 pound, 3 ounces. So, miracle baby, and I just kept on stepping.
Still, when it came time for the actual pitch, it went a lot farther than 15 feet.
It may not have been a strike, but dad would be proud.
“I would hope that my dad is looking down on me from heaven,” said Smith. “Pop, I love you!”
Big West Now: The Girl of Summer
In June of 2016 Kelsie Whitmore made history as the first woman to appear on a professional baseball roster in 60 years. Whitmore signed with the Sonoma Stompers and will reprise her role on the independent pro squad this summer. Kelsie wants all girls to know that they can play baseball too.