MESA, Ariz. - From reporting on-site at the Winter Olympics to investigating ocean contamination in the Pacific, Angela Sun's career resume is diverse and wide-ranging.
Now she tackles another challenge as CSN California's new A's in-game reporter, where she'll interact with players, coaches and fans to bring viewers a fresh perspective during home telecasts at the Coliseum.
Sun joins the A's broadcast team during a time of increased optimism surrounding the franchise's future, with an announcement expected this year about a location for the A's to build a new ballpark in Oakland.
"I'm excited about Oakland, and the A's organization specifically, because there's just so much energy and good vibes right now," Sun said. "Oakland is such a special place, and I feel like there are so many things that have yet to be discovered. I'm really excited to explore that, to share fans' stories, to showcase really all that it has to offer."
A Saratoga native who attended UCLA, Sun has been somewhat of a trailblazer, becoming the first Asian American female sportscaster to appear on ESPN, Yahoo Sports, Tennis Channel, Fox Sports Net and NBC.
She hosted the Yahoo Sports' NFL-themed show "Outside The Game," where her stories ranged from Josh Cribbs' fashion style to Alan Page's post-football career as a Minnesota Supreme Court justice. In 2010, she reported for Yahoo on site from Vancouver at the Winter Olympics.
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As for her own athletic career growing up in the South Bay, Sun broke into a smile describing how her mother played a part in getting that off the ground.
"My mom would not let me do cheerleading," she said. "Instead, I did volleyball, basketball and softball until I realized I was vertically challenged and I wasn't going to grow too much anymore."
She would soon get into activities like snowboarding and skateboarding, which wound up being good preparation for a stint covering the X Games. In high school Sun even taught herself how to surf. Looking back now, she jokes that it wasn't the safest decision she's made, but it's an example of how she dives into things that catch her interest.
"I'm just pretty stubborn that way," she said. "If I set my mind to something, I will go 110 percent into it. I like to do my research and I like to be thorough about things. But I'm also the first one to say, ‘I don't know what I'm talking about.' And if I don't, I'll ask.
"So I try to soak things in like a sponge. And that's what I'm here for, for the fans and for the players and for the staff and coaches … I want to share their stories and I want to be that conduit so that we get to learn a little bit more behind the uniform."
That desire to explore was instilled in Sun by her father, who passed away when she was just starting college. Her love for surfing planted the seed for the feature documentary she directed and produced in 2013. "Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch" examines the damaging effects of plastic pollution in the oceans. The film has received critical praise and been shown at more than 60 film festivals. Read up on it at plasticparadisemovie.com.
Sun says her inquisitive nature will guide her reporting on the A's just as it has her other assignments.
"I think if you're passionately curious about things," she said, "it'll just lead you down different roads."
