‘So fun’: Crowd of almost 10,000 watches Triple-A Sacramento River Cats open 23rd season
Chip Maxson arrived early and left late.
The man has many titles, including president and chief operating officer of the Sacramento River Cats, but he’s never been afraid to roll up his sleeves and help with the heavy lifting, of getting a staff and venue up and ready for a 75-game home schedule of Triple-A baseball.
In preparation for Tuesday night’s home opener against the El Paso Chihuahuas, Maxson crawled out of bed at 4:45 a.m., arrived at Sutter Health Park before 7 and didn’t leave until well past the 11 o’clock news.
Players, managers and coaches have pregame jitters to start any season or even any game. Imagine the boss.
In a sport geared for the consumer, it’s on the good-spirited Maxson to do his part to ensure that business is booming. It was booming here with long lines to get into the ballpark, more long lines in the concourse to sample the vast food and drink menus, and then some more in the team store, which has everything a fan could want, including hats, bats, hoodies, foam fingers and the parent-club garb of the San Francisco Giants.
Maxson was in 2019 named the Pacific Coast League Executive of the Year for his leadership, including the team capturing the Triple-A championship, and as nice as winning is, his real aim is customer satisfaction.
“Yeah, a little bit of butterflies,” Maxson said. “Haven’t slept much the last week or two, but there’s excitement on Opening Day. We want people to feel welcome here. We don’t want to take any of this for granted. It’s a treasured memory and it’s all about fun — clean, safe and fun. We preach that. Fans will come back again and again and again.”
Barb Richards will vouch for that. A retired teacher from Folsom, she has been a regular at River Cats games for years. Flanked by four grandchildren and husband, Bob, Team Richards was decked in Sacramento garb from head to toe. They were a giddy lot in which no one acted their age.
“This is still the best value in town, and it’s baseball, and this a great ballpark,” Barb Richards said, a hot dog and a grandchild’s hand in one hand and a beer in the other. “That’s why we keep coming back. It never gets old, and it never gets old because baseball never gets old.”
The River Cats have been a draw since they arrived in West Sacramento in 2000, a year after winning the Triple-A championship as the Vancouver Grizzlies, north of the border. The first River Cats team didn’t play its home opener in West Sacramento until early May of 2000 because the ballpark wasn’t finished.
The River Cats led all of Minor League Baseball in attendance for 10 of their first 12 seasons. The venue has aged nicely. You also won’t find a better infield and outfield anywhere, a complete makeover from a months-ago overhaul.
It left Steve Sax, a West Sacramento native who played second base for World Series championship Dodgers teams in 1981 and ‘88, in a bit of awe.
“Just a beautiful field,” Sax said, adding that the young boys in his company wondered if the grass was real because it looked so pristine and perfect.
Sax is a 1978 graduate of since-closed James Marshall High School, located a relay throw or two away from Sutter Health Park, and he heard River City High School’s marching band and color guard perform before the game and during the seventh-inning stretch. River City’s campus is in West Sacramento.
In an effort to connect to the community, it made sense to have the local high school provide some entertainment. Easy commute and lasting memories.
“We did the preseason party for River Cats fans here, and we knocked it out of the park,” said Rudy Cisneros, the River City band director. “This is spring break for our students, so they’re out of school, but they donated their time. It’s completely voluntary and a thrill for them to be here.”
Maxson is in his 20th year in Minor League Baseball and 11th with the River Cats. Never mind the lack of sleep. He was radiant and full of cheer. His vision matches that of Art Savage, the beloved and late owner who gave Sacramento its first Triple-A team since the Sacramento Solons left town in the 1970s.
Savage died in 2009 from cancer at 58. His retired No. 1 jersey is displayed on the left-field fence. Sutter Health Park was modeled after the old Yankees Stadium — a smaller version with a capacity of 14,014 — which “is timeless,” as Maxson said.
A crowd of 9,548 attended Tuesday’s game, the first of a six-game home stand that concludes with a 1:05 first pitch on Sunday against El Paso. Fans got to see the top left-handed pitching prospect in all of Minor League Baseball in Kyle Harrison, who started and struck out four and walked four in two innings in his Sacramento debut. Fans saw El Paso leadoff man Fernando Tatis Jr., the San Diego Padres slugger who was on a rehabilitation assignment. It is a treat for minor league fans to see Major League talents. But not many stuck around for the final out of a 10-8 loss as the night chill set in.
Maxson was a man in continuous motion Tuesday. He checked in with employees and members of the guest services team, the kind folks who greet people in the park and helped them find their way around.
Maxson popped into suites to say hello to corporate sponsors and members of the Sacramento Kings executive team. Kings owner Vivek Ranadive purchased the River Cats in August for $90 million.
John Ellis, a contractor from Placer County, is a longtime Kings and River Cats fan. He wore a hoodie that had “Light the Beam!” splashed across the back, in reference to the purple beam that rockets from Golden 1 Center into the night sky after each Kings victory. The beam can be seen from Sutter Health Park, including Tuesday after the Kings won in New Orleans to secure their first Pacific Division championship since 2003.
“This region is big enough with enough fans to attend games at the Kings, the River Cats, FC Republic soccer, all the local high schools and colleges,” Ellis said. “I don’t think there’s ever been a better time for all those sports than now. But there’s only one park like this, and baseball is just baseball, so fun.”
This story was originally published April 5, 2023 at 4:00 AM.