The Sports Informant

I was asked last week, “If you could have anything for Christmas, what would you want?” While ludicrous responses multiplied in my mind, I started thinking about one common theme that surrounded many of my more simplified wishes. Given anything aside from wealth, prosperity and health, and focusing away from personal gain and my family, I seemed to have several wishes surrounding Sacramento sports.

I thought I’d share those in hopes for better days. There’s no harm in wishing for things around Christmas, so here are the Top 5 gifts I’d like from Santa Claus revolving around Sacramento sports.

5. Bring a professional baseball team to Sacramento. The Bay Area has two Major League Baseball teams and doesn’t appreciate either one enough. Why split San Francisco and Oakland’s global community in two by giving it two teams and making those teams rivals? Make Sacramento a rival and let the Bay Area unite in its love for its single team, then let Sacramento come right back with a franchise embraced not only by fandom, but ultimately by winning seasons.

The Sacramento River Cats are great, but why not bring the real deal to Sacramento? (Photo courtesy Greg Ashman)

You’ve seen the success of Triple-A Oakland A’s affiliate the Sacramento River Cats, who have won two Triple-A championships the last three years and nearly secured another this past season. Why not bring the real deal here? Instead of grooming players in front of Sacramento fans so they can succeed in Oakland, let them grow and stay in Sacramento instead, where the fan base learns to love these guys only to watch them leave town for better pastures in the majors. Bring the majors to Sacramento and you’ll see a community with cowbells and a whole lot of loyalty turn the franchise into one of the most popular in the Western United States.

4. Build an arena that will make Sacramento proud. This one could be the most important to Sacramento’s future. While talks still bounce around with organizers planning to build a new arena in Sacramento, I asked Santa Claus to gift us with one that will do more than just comfortably seat thousands of fans. Instead, give Sacramento something spectacular, something to not only draw local fans, but draw fans from across the nation.

Sacramento is the capital city of one of the greatest states in the nation. Its biggest attraction should reflect that. Go big, Sacramento and California, the city and state need it.

ARCO Arena needs a makeover and Sacramento needs a tourist spot. (Photo courtesy Greg Ashman)

Build an attraction that will bring more than just NBA fans. Build something that will bring back the NCAA basketball tournament, something that will attract the biggest of headlining shows, something that will wow every major organization in the United States looking to go on tour.

Make Sacramento a destination again. The cow town mentality is gone. If Santa brings what I’m asking for, Sacramento will be a major city worthy of tourism from celebrities, dignitaries and even royalty. What better for a home for Kings?

3. Expand the popular Sacramento fight scene. This one may be a given in Mixed Martial Arts already, as the talent level in Sacramento is booming in the sport, and the popularity of organizations like the UFC, WEC and Strikeforce continue to bring national attention to local fighters, but boxing has nearly disappeared from Sacramento’s limelight. It needs to come back.

While continuing the growth of MMA as a sport and as a home front for fighters from Sacramento, I’m asking Santa to also bring us some big names in boxing. Our last attempt failed miserably as former champ Oleg Maskaev’s road back to the heavyweight title ended with an embarrassing loss in Sacramento just weeks ago to relatively unknown Nagy Aguilera.

Sacramento gyms are producing prospects, but not enough for the national boxing scene. (Photo courtesy Kurt Garcia)

The event was a huge setback for Sacramento’s boxing scene, and aside from a Tony “The Tiger” Lopez promotion last year that drew fans to Raley Field, and an ESPN-televised Friday Night Fights in Sacramento recently, the area has received no other attention in the sport. This is tragic.

If Santa can fly around the world in one night handing out toys, he can surely grace us with a better presence in boxing. Contrary to popular belief, the sport is not dying. At the higher levels, it’s seeing record numbers in viewers and a new generation of fans continues grow into the sweet science. Santa needs to bring Sacramento someone to cheer on again.

2. Bring the belt back to Sactown. Adding to the previous wish, I can’t help but ask Santa for a championship belt to come back to Sacramento. I’m referring to, of course, the World Extreme Cagefighting Featherweight belt once wrapped around the waist of Sacramento mixed martial artist Urijah Faber.

Former champ Urijah Faber posed for us with his belt in 2008. (Photo courtesy Kurt Garcia)

For two years, when the sport grew to its most popular, Faber was the king of not only his weight class, but of the entire organization. He was, and in many ways still is, the poster child for the WEC. Despite losing his belt to Mike Brown last year, and losing a bid to get it back earlier this year, Faber still headlines events, including a non-title fight in Sacramento next month. While that’s all great, it’s just not the same without the championship belt.

When I first interviewed Faber at his gym Ultimate Fitness in Sacramento, he showed me the belt he held at the time. It was locked in an enormous safe, and when he handed it to me he gleamed with pride. Holding the heavy gold-laden leather in my hands, I felt a sense of greatness. It wasn’t my belt, but simply throwing it over my shoulder for fun, I felt like the king of the world. I realized the importance the title held for Faber at that moment, and now, with no professionals possessing championship trophies in the area, I realize the importance of Faber holding the belt for the entire city.

1. Give the most loyal fans in the NBA a championship from the Sacramento Kings. This is a tall order even for the jolly fat man in the red suit. Right now, no magic can dethrone the Los Angeles Lakers, not even the Orlando Magic, as was proven in last year’s run to the title for Kobe Bryant and Co. But a wish wouldn’t be a wish if it was easy to accomplish, right?

There is no better sports present for Sacramento than an NBA championship for the Kings. (Photo courtesy Greg Ashman)

Think about what that could do for the spirits of everyone in Sacramento. The Kings are Sacramento. I say that with emphasis because if they ever left for, let’s say, Las Vegas, the city would fall apart. The only professional team left in the city after the dismantling of the Sacramento Monarchs, the Kings are all fans in the area have. They put their hearts and souls into the success and failures of the Kings, and nothing would be a greater gift than an NBA championship.

After finishing 17-65 as the worst team in the NBA last year, the Kings are seeing vast improvement this season, and fans are getting excited again. Sacramento hasn’t seen the playoffs in years, let alone gotten a sniff at a championship. If there ever was a gift that could raise the spirits of an entire nation, and that’s the purple nation I’m referring to, it’s this. And isn’t that what Christmas is all about?