A’s admit Sacramento opener ‘feels different’ as Cubs’ Oakland native maligns move

WEST SACRAMENTO — The first thing that should be noted is the dateline.

“I mean, I’d rather be playing in Oakland,” Cubs infielder Nico Hoerner said.

Instead, the Oakland native was a reluctant participant in history Monday night, the first time Major League Baseball has been played here since the city was incorporated in 1987 (or dating back even further, to the founding of the state capital across the river in 1850).

The A’s played host to the Cubs for a home opener unlike any other, to ring in a new season at a ballpark they share with another team’s Triple-A club in front of a fanbase that will only know them for three years, before they bolt for Las Vegas.

“It feels different in a lot of ways,” A’s outfielder Brent Rooker said before the game. “Different location. Obviously a different setting. But it feels the same too. Butterflies are there, excitement is there.”

“I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but we’re here,” Cubs infielder Justin Turner added from the makeshift visitors’ quarters beyond the center field wall of Sutter Health Park.

The 14,000-seat stadium, where the Triple-A River Cats opened their season over the weekend, received a makeover in preparation for the A’s temporary stay, including a drainage and irrigation system that should help the playing surface hold up to near-daily action this summer.

The new visitors’ clubhouse might have the smallest footprint in the majors, and the A’s facilities aren’t much bigger. But the only indications that they may not have spared any expense are the drop ceilings and leather couches left over from the Coliseum clubhouse on the A’s side.

“Have you been in the Coliseum visiting clubhouse?” Turner cracked. “This one is actually pretty nice. Maybe the only downside is that it’s in center field.”

The home clubhouse is right next door, in left field, which was Luis Severino’s only complaint. When he visited the ballpark after signing his three-year, $67 million contract, the entire playing surface was still torn up and under construction.

“It’s great to see it all come together. … It’s a little small, but we have everything we need,” Severino said. “The gym is nice, too. The only thing that’s not great is how far the clubhouse is from the dugout.

“If you have a bad game, the fans can let you know right away.”

Severino is accustomed to the limelight after spending his entire career in New York — 2015-23 with the Yankees, last year with the Mets — but didn’t anticipate much of an adjustment going from the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple to the fifth-most populous metro area in California.

“There’s not going to be 20,000 fans, but there’s going to be no empty seats,” said Severino, who preferred to live outside of Manhattan.

In an ideal world, according to Rooker, the intimate, two-story setting will take on the energy of an SEC baseball game, the Mississippi State grad said.

“I think the biggest difference will be trying to find spots to eat, restaurants,” Severino said. “I don’t know what I’m going to eat.”

That is where Tyler Ferguson comes in.

The 31-year-old reliever and one-time Sacramento resident has been a popular guy in the A’s clubhouse. The Fresno native called the city home for the previous five years before, ironically, uprooting for San Luis Obispo this past offseason.

“I hope they’re pleasantly surprised, you know, there are some good spots downtown and they’re close to the ballpark,” Ferguson said. “We’re hopefully going to put together a ‘Welcome to Sac’ pamphlet to have everyone introduced to the city.”

When it comes to the Oakland fans, Hoerner, a Head-Royce School alum, wanted them to know they aren’t forgotten.

In fact, he was once one of them.

“Oakland is a special place for me. … I feel for the fans in Oakland,” said Hoerner, who called the 2013 ALDS against the Tigers the best sporting event he has ever attended.

“That still gives me chills thinking about that.”

Hoerner’s mom still lives in Oakland and he has friends who joined the fan-led boycott against ownership.

“She’ll be here,” Hoerner said. “For me.”