How a city reached its limit with the Dodgers: Los Angeles’ love for the Dodgers was unconditional for four decades. But their grip on L.A. began to slip in 1998, and now their popularity is in free-fall. How did this happen, and can they get it back?
Illustration: Once known as a Dodgers town, the Lakers have become the team of preference in L.A. Credit: Paul Rogers / For The Times
Eight year-old me will always bleed Dodger Blue.
I was a very lucky kid. I grew up regularly going to Chavez Ravine for games with my father, mother and brothers. Sitting in the loge section just up from first base, I shared a transistor radio with my dad so we could hear Vin Scully. Even live, it wasn’t a Dodger game if you couldn’t hear Vin call the play-by-play. My whole life seemed like Dodger Dogs and Carnation Malts.
Since pre-school I had been good childhood friends with Ron Cey’s son. We played little-league together. I even went on a camping trip with him and his dad and got carsick on the way for good measure. I once ate spaghetti with Tommy Lasorda. I remember well The Big Blue Wrecking Crew, reveled in Fernando Mania, and cringed every time Steve Sax threw to first. Oh, and I was in the stands when Kirk Gibson hit his fabled shot.
No matter what happens none of that can be taken away.
Source: Los Angeles Times
As a lifelong Dodger fan, the Giants winning the pennant is mostly intolerable. With Dodgertown in such a state of disarray, the only thing a fan has to hold onto is our hated rivals’ history of ineptitude and heartbreak. Even in our darkest moments, we’ve always been able to take comfort in the fact that the Giants have not won the World Series since following the Dodgers west in the 1950s - while the Dodgers have won the title five times in Los Angeles.
There’s still hope, in the form of the Texas Rangers, who spared this Dodger fan from the nightmare scenario - a Yankees-Giants World Series - by shocking the Evil Empire. So - and I can’t believe I’m saying this - “Go Rangers!”
via: frontpages
Source: frontpages
