'An Unbelievable Honor': Oakland A's First Female Announcer Amelia Schimmel Takes the Mic

The Oakland A’s are welcoming back eager baseball fans in person at the Coliseum, starting Thursday at 33% capacity, one day after Alameda County entered the state's less restrictive orange tier of coronavirus reopening guidelines.

“The minute any fans can come back to the Coliseum, it's just going to feel just so magical,” said Amelia Schimmel, the team’s new public address announcer for all home games.

Schimmel’s voice will be greeting fans Thursday for the A's Opening Day matchup against the Houston Astros.

An Oakland native, she’s the first woman to take the job for the Athletics. Her longtime predecessors Roy Steele and Dick Callahan gave their voices to the stadium for more than 50 seasons combined.

“I got to do a couple games in spring training in front of fans, so that was my first foray into people who weren't made of cardboard,” Schimmel said. “You know, there's anxiety. There's some pressure there, but I'm just going to do the best I can.”

Schimmel talked with KQED morning host Brian Watt about her new role and her lifelong love of the A’s.

‘Now I Can Really Be a Fan’

Schimmel, 34, grew up cheering on the Oakland A’s and hearing Steele’s and Callahan’s voices.

“Even 7 or 8 years old, I may not have known their names, but I knew their voices,” she said. “And so I got into the Coliseum, and their voices ... It just felt like home to me.”

Schimmel went on to become an Emmy-winning editor and segment producer for the Major League Baseball Network. In the last three years, she worked for the A’s as a producer of game entertainment and video content.

Schimmel said Callahan, also a PA announcer for the Golden State Warriors until 2000, mentored her during that time.

Last season, during the pandemic, she took over for him while he dealt with non-COVID health issues, according to NBC Sports.

“I got to learn from the best,” Schimmel said. “The assumption was that he was going to come back in 2021, and unfortunately, he passed this January. And it was just such an unbelievable loss for all of us. He was such a great human and great announcer.”

“[Callahan] would study the game and he would know exactly which moments that he was getting his voice excited for or where he needed to be solemn,” Schimmel said.

“And I think it helps to be a fan because he was a huge fan of the A's — a huge fan of sports in general. It's funny because my entire career I've had to suppress my fandom, working at MLB Network, and kind of just be a fan of every team. But now I can really be a fan of the A's.”

A League of Their Own

Both Bay Area MLB teams now have female PA announcers.

Renel Brooks-Moon, who has been the voice of the San Francisco Giants since 2000, tweeted her congratulations and excitement. (Marysol Castro does the job for the New York Mets.)

“I was fortunate enough growing up in the Bay Area to get to hear Renel," Schimmel said. "When she started working for the Giants, I was just overwhelmed with joy. I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. But I never considered that it would be an opportunity for me. I mean, the fact that I'm able to be in this position right now is an unbelievable honor.”

Schimmel hopes both the league and the game continue to evolve. Last year, Kim Ng became the first female general manager in MLB history for the Miami Marlins.

“It’s good sometimes to break with tradition. It's good to make change,” Schimmel said. “Being open minded is key. There are a lot of women who are very qualified and talented for a lot of these roles.”