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Video: Barry Zito Sings National Anthem Before A's Final Game at Oakland Coliseum

Julia StumbaughSeptember 26, 2024

OAKLAND, CA - JULY 01:  Former pitcher Barry Zito of the Oakland Athletics tosses out the ceremonial first pitch before the game agains the Atlanta Braves at the Oakland Coliseum on July 1, 2017 in Oakland, California. The Atlanta Braves defeated the Oakland Athletics 4-3.  (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)
Jason O. Watson/Getty Images

Former Oakland Athletics pitcher Barry Zito returned to Oakland Coliseum on Thursday to sing the national anthem ahead of his former team's final game in the stadium.

Zito's anthem opened a home game against the Texas Rangers that will mark the end of the Athletics' 57-year tenure in Oakland.

B/R Walk-Off @BRWalkoff

Barry Zito sang the final national anthem at the Oakland Coliseum 💚<br><br>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCSAthletics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBCSAthletics</a>)<a href="https://t.co/fwPVs3ZZrb">pic.twitter.com/fwPVs3ZZrb</a>

The Athletics are set to drop the name "Oakland" next season as the team prepares for its eventual move to Las Vegas.

Zito pitched for the Athletics for the first seven seasons of his MLB career and won a Cy Young award with the team in 2002.

He wasn't the only former A's legend to attend the final MLB game at the Coliseum.

Former pitcher Dave "Smoke" Stewart, who was named World Series MVP after helping power the Athletics to the 1989 title, and Hall of Fame left fielder Rickey Henderson, star of the 1989 championship team and 1990 AL MVP, joined together to throw out the first pitch ahead of Thursday's final home game.

A's on NBCS @NBCSAthletics

A's legends <a href="https://twitter.com/Dsmoke34?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DSmoke34</a> and Rickey Henderson throw out the final first pitch at the Coliseum 🥹 <a href="https://t.co/kEASQV62cg">pic.twitter.com/kEASQV62cg</a>

Oakland A's @Athletics

🐐 GOATS 🐐 <a href="https://t.co/8dx6jQvjlX">pic.twitter.com/8dx6jQvjlX</a>

Stewart, Henderson and Zito returned to the Coliseum in front of a packed crowd, with the stadium expected to sell out to 46,000 fans for the final home game of the season.

Following the team's founding in Philadelphia and move to Kansas City, the Athletics have been located in Oakland and played at the Oakland Coliseum since 1968.

The Athletics won three straight titles between 1972 and 1974, claimed their most recent championship with Stewart and Henderson in 1989, and saw a resurgence in the early 2000s with the arrival of the star pitching trio of Zito, Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder.

After years of contention with the city of Oakland over proposals for a new ballpark to replace the Coliseum, the team announced ahead of the 2024 campaign that the A's would play one more season in the city before relocating to Las Vegas in 2028.

The Athletics are now projected to spend at least the next three seasons playing in a minor league stadium in West Sacramento, California while the long-awaited new ballpark is constructed in Nevada.

The A's entered Thursday's home finale against the Rangers with a 68-90 record. Their final season as an Oakland club will conclude with three road games against the Seattle Mariners, who were eliminated on Thursday from playoff contention.