Philadelphia Phillies Ace Doesn't Hold Back When Speaking of A's Sacramento Ballpark

There has been a lot of work done to make Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento as big-league ready as it can be for the Athletics three or more year stay at the Triple-A facility. Plenty of players have had complaints since the A's started playing there this season, with Philadelphia Phillies ace Zack Wheeler recently joining the chorus after his most recent outing.

The right-hander told NBC Sports Philadelphia, "The mound was terrible. That was really it," he said. "I felt great today and that's why I was frustrated, because I felt great and the mound was bad. It was like cement right in front of the rubber and if you did break it up, there were little bumps in it.

"It probably doesn't sound like a lot but when you're used to pitching on similar mounds throughout the league, just that little difference messes with you. Couldn't really get into the dirt to drive, was kinda throwing all arm tonight. It was a little different. I just had to make little adjustments out there as it went."

Relief pitcher Jordan Romano was also apparently having a hard time getting his footing set, as his velocity dipped from 95.2 on the year with his four-seamer down to 93.4, a difference of nearly two miles per hour. He's also the one that gave up the three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to Nick Kurtz to make things interesting.

The Phillies still ended up winning the first two games of the series, before ultimately falling to the A's in a dramatic win for the green and gold that snapped an 11-game losing streak.

The real question isn't necessarily whether Sutter Health Park is considered a big-league facility. It's not, and that's through no fault of Sacramento or the ballpark itself. It wasn't built to be a big-league stadium.

The question at hand is if there are any other options for the A's to consider aside from Sacramento that would be seen as an upgrade for the players. The obvious answer would be the Oakland Coliseum, which is in fact a big league facility, though it too has its warts.

The problem with that proposal is that the grounds crew have been let go, so the pristine field that Clay Wood manicured may not be in the same condition. That's the lesser problem, though. The big one would be the public relations nightmare that would caused for the franchise, who have largely escaped "Sell the team!" chants this season.

The franchise would be opening themselves up to more fan protests, along with having to pay rent to play there (something they don't have to do in Sacramento). It would be a bad look for the league as well, who have taken plenty of shots after allowing Fisher to leave Oakland in the first place. To then ask the city for a bail out wouldn't be MLB's finest moment.

As of right now, it would appear safe to say that Oakland is off the table as an interim destination. Though, there is one key difference now, and that is that the city has a new mayor. Perhaps discussions could be more fruitful in new negotiations.

Presuming Oakland is off the table, where else could the A's feasibly go? Some would say Utah's minor-league park, or something similar, but the reason the A's are in Sacramento in the first place is because of the TV money they receive from their deal with Comcast Sports California. They'll have to stay in this general region in order to get that money, and there just aren't many facilities available.

What will likely happen is that the players will voice their concerns, and the team will continue to make upgrades to the ballpark heading into years two and three (and four?). It still wouldn't be perfect, but it would be better, and perhaps more manageable than it has been in the first couple of months.