Oakland rapper Too $hort and Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong have expanded their horizons from music to baseball.
The two Bay Area musical icons are pitching in financially as members in the ownership group of the Oakland Ballers, a minor league franchise in the independent Pioneer League, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The team is filling the void left by MLB’s Oakland Athletics, who are playing their 2025 home games in Sacramento, California, before relocating to Las Vegas after a new stadium is built.
“This is all about bringing families to a ball game,” Armstrong said in an email to The Hollywood Reporter. “After the A’s left, the town was heartbroken. The Ballers are going to bring good vibes back to Oakland and the broader East Bay.”
“Oakland has produced some of the best athletes and sports fans in the world and the Ballers’ commitment to feeding that competitive fire is exciting for me as an Oakland native,” Too $hort said in a statement. “I’m proud to be joining the Ballers ownership group, and excited for the impact we’re going to have on the community and the overall sports landscape in the Bay Area and beyond.”
The Ballers also became the first U.S. professional franchise to add a fan owner to its board of directors, as Jorge Leon was elected to the board in December to serve a two-year term, The Athletic reported.
The Ballers made their debut in 2024 at newly constructed Raimondi Park, a 4,000-seat facility, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Oakland reached the Pioneer League playoffs in 2024 and will kick off their new season on May 20, The Athletic reported.
Armstrong, 53, founded Green Day in 1987 with Mike Dirnt. The band has sold more than 85 million records worldwide and has won four Grammy Awards. Armstrong also won a Grammy for Best Musical Show Album for “American Idiot,” which also featured Green Day.
Too $hort, 58, whose full name is Todd Anthony Shaw, rose to prominence during the 1980s as a pioneer of West Coast hip-hop.