Rowdy Tellez was not going to pay for his Sacramento homecoming this week against the Athletics.
“I told my friends, if it was San Francisco or Oakland, I could do it,” the Seattle Mariners first baseman said Wednesday, smiling. “Because I’m aware of the high gas prices out here. But I said there are no excuses here. “They have to buy their tickets.”
Tellez did not specify how many locals came to see him play this week at Sutter Health Park. The Elk Grove High School alum stayed with his parents about 20 minutes south of the stadium while his big-league team made its debut in California’s capital region.
During the A’s and Mariners’ three-game series in West Sacramento this week, he had a large crowd behind the Seattle dugout.
Although he did not pay for everyone’s tickets, he treated his guests to one of the week’s biggest hits. After falling behind 5-0 in Wednesday’s rubber match, the Mariners rallied with a three-run home run in the sixth inning.
Seattle scored twice more in the eighth inning to secure a 6-5 victory, taking two of three against their American League West opponents.
“All the games I played here were in high school, but it’s pretty cool to be here,” Tellez told the crowd. “A lot of friends and family come to see me, and it’s great to be so close to home. I always assumed Oakland and San Francisco would be the closest I’d ever get to home, but 20 minutes from here is pretty cool.”
Tellez’s home run was his fifth this season. He is currently in his eighth MLB season and fourth team. His best season came in 2022 with the Milwaukee Brewers, when he hit 35 home runs and 89 RBIs.
Mitch Spence’s cut-fastball on a 3-2 pitch was the source of Wednesday’s home run. It caught a bit too much of the plate in the lower, inside portion of the strike zone.
“That’s a swing path for Rowdy,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay explained. “If it’s up and in, he’ll have a more difficult time staying inside the baseball. He dropped the barrel; it was a pitch to the sweet spot.”
Tellez explained, “I knew he had to come to me, and he didn’t want to walk guys. And I was able to make a good swing with it.”
His home run landed in the lawn seating beyond the right-field fence, where a fan caught it after a single bounce off the bullpen roof.
Tellez signed with the Mariners as a free agent in the offseason on a minor league contract, but he worked hard to make the team after spring training. He is one of six former Elk Grove High School teammates to have played in the majors.
Tellez maintains relationships with J.D. Davis, Dom Nuñez, Derek Hill, Nick Madrigal, and Dylan Carlson.
“You got to watch all these kids grow up,” Tellez said. “It’s pretty special that there are six of us from six different years, and we’ve all made it to the big leagues. Obviously, (Jeff Carlson) coached all of us, which I know is pretty special.”
Tellez was a standout in high school, winning Sacramento Bee Player of the Year honors in 2012 and 2013.
Tellez was moved to see Ted Price, a longtime Elk Grove High School baseball fan, this week during the series. Price lost his wife of 60 years, Eleanor, in November 2020. The couple was ardent supporters of Tellez and the Thundering Herd baseball team.
“They came to every high school game that I was part of,” Tellez informed the crowd. “To have that person come out like that, as well as the people who came out to support you. It demonstrates how important our program at Elk Grove School was to everyone in the community.”
A’s drop in division standings
Thanks in large part to Tellez, the A’s dropped to 20-18 and now sit three games behind the Mariners (22-14) for the AL West lead. Wednesday marked the second straight game the A’s lost a late-inning lead, following a 5-3 defeat Tuesday night. The A’s prevailed 7-6 in 11 innings on Monday, with rookie shortstop Jacob Wilson hitting a walk-off single.
On Wednesday, Wilson had his first four-hit game in leadoff and raised his season batting average to.357. Gunnar Hogland pitched well in his second major-league start, going 5 1/3 innings and allowing two earned runs.
Lawrence Butler hit a solo home run in the fourth inning, his sixth this season.
The A’s will have their first day off since April 21 on Thursday, before hosting the first-place New York Yankees for three games this weekend. Friday’s first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Sutter Health Park.
