While many of the top closers in MLB get fun entrance music and effects for when they enter the game, Oakland Athletics closer Mason Miller hilariously revealed recently why the sad state of the team’s stadium won’t allow for his walk from the bullpen to get the same love.
Heading into the MLB game today, things are not as bad for the Oakland Athletics as some might have expected. Despite the team’s ownership doing as little as possible to field a competitive team ahead of a move to Sacramento in 2025, and then Las Vegas in 2028, they are actually 17-18 on the season.
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- Mason Miller stats (2024): 8 saves, 1.26 ERA, 0.767 WHIP, 19 strikeouts, 14.1 innings pitched
Along with outfielder Brent Rooker, closer Mason Miller has played a huge part in their solid start as he continues to evolve into one of the best in the game. The 25-year-old already has eight saves, a 1.26 ERA, and 29 strikeouts in just over 14 innings this season.
It is why he was recently a guest on the “Foul Territory” podcast hosted by MLB veteran AJ Pierzynski. During the conversation, the former White Sox star asked if Miller could get a fancy entrance to the game, similar to what Grant Balfour once had in Oakland and players like Edwin Diaz and Camilo Doval currently get with their teams — complete with unique music and lighting effects.
Unfortunately, Mason Miller had a sad but still funny response to that question.
Mason Miller reveals sad reason why he won’t get fancy lighting effects for his entrance in Oakland Coliseum
“We are trying a couple of things out. We talked about the lights [but] I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Miller admitted with a laugh. “They said the lights might not come back on. But we got a couple of decals going around the [stadium].”
When asked by one of the co-hosts who informed him that if they shut the lights off, or at least flicker them, they won’t come back on, Miller claimed it was one of the public relations people for the team.
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“We’ll leave the game at 11 PM sometimes, and the lights are still on. I went to pick up my wife a the airport late one time [and they were still on]. I don’t know, maybe they just stay on most of the time. I’m not privy to that information,” Miller said with a smile.
It’s been well-documented how bad Oakland Coliseum has gotten under the ownership of John Fisher, but this just adds another sad layer to the story of a building that is likely to be torn down once the team leaves town.
