A's bullpen stingy on mound, charitable in community

OAKLAND -- The newest member of the A's Community Fund is the bullpen staff, which teamed with the franchise's fundraising entity to create the "A's Relief" program.

Every month throughout the season, the A's Community Fund and bullpen will honor the "A's Reliever of the Month," with the winners honored in a pregame ceremony. Along with several prizes, a donation will be made to the charity of the recipient's choice.

"As a bullpen, we realize how much our unit can bring relief to the team," A's reliever Jerry Blevins said. "We want to bring that same relief to those individuals and groups in the community who share our common goal of helping those around us."

Lorrain Taylor became the first recipient Saturday as June's Reliever of the Month award winner. Taylor founded "1,000 Mothers to Prevent Violence," which eases the detrimental and traumatic impact on homicide and violent crime victim survivors in the Bay Area.

In future months, A's fans will have the opportunity to nominate the Reliever of the Month. In the coming weeks, visit oaklandathletics.com/community for more information about A's Relief.