Last year, Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong posted an video from the Rogers Center in Toronto, showing the East Bay-raised rock star spray painting over the stadium’s Oakland A’s logo with an Oakland Ballers logo. The video, in a way, foreshadowed this week’s news.
The Oakland Ballers have announced that Armstrong, along with pioneering Oakland rapper and entrepreneur Too Short, are now investors in the Ballers. They join a long list of fans who also own a portion of the team.
The Ballers, a second-year professional baseball franchise that plays in the independent Pioneer League, hosts their home games at West Oakland’s Raimondi Park. Last year, over the course of 48 home games, the team attracted more than 92,000 fans.
Ahead of the inaugural season, the team’s founders, Bryan Carmel and Paul Freedman, opened the doors to potential investors. They hoped that local sports fans who’ve been dismayed by other franchises leaving Oakland would show up — and they did.
2,200 people raised over $1.2 million dollars in support of the team. The Ballers are back at it this year, looking to raise $2 million. With the social collateral that Armstrong and Too Short bring, the team is well on its way.
