Missed Opportunity

The evening of November 30th Los Angeles was hit with what to some was a crippling wind storm. In some places sustained winds of 80mph and gusts of up to 100mph wreaked havoc on unprepared Angelinos. The next day the aftermath was everywhere. Fallen trees, broken branches, palm fronds strewn everywhere was the scene and no power was the condition in many parts of the city. A week later, from Hollywood to Westwood and from Lake View Terrace to City Terrace the streets are still littered with fallen tree branches, mountains of palm fronds and the occasional palm tree mounted on the curb, but hey, power was finally restored a day or two ago.

While I am marginally upset that this stuff hasn’t been cleaned up yet and fractionally more upset that a City Hall staffer told me to look at it from the bright side that mother nature just did a lot of tree trimming for us, I’m mostly upset that the Mayor and Councilmembers didn’t take advantage of this opportunity to talk about disaster preparedness. While many sections of the city were out of power, I saw how distraught some of my fellow Angelinos were because they couldn’t charge their laptops or cellphones or how impacted some people were because they had just bought groceries that day and they didn’t want their food to spoil and had to buy bags of ice to store in their refrigerators to keep the temperature down. At least these people could go to the Starbucks down the street and plug in or go to the market and buy ice.

Had this been a major earthquake where the whole city grid was cut-off, 7-11 isn’t going to have ice for your fridge and Starbucks isn’t going to be able to charge your laptop not to mention charging your cellphone will be futile because all communications will be down anyways!

The least our City leaders could have done was talk about how that same Mother Nature that just “trimmed our trees”, gave us that 10 minute order to disperse LAPD supposedly gave the City Hall Park occupiers. So what if National Preparedness Month was three months ago, the reality is this town sits on some pretty seismically active land and preparedness should be preached whenever possible. Once again our leaders show the kind of foresight that got us into this budgetary mess we’ve been in for years.

On August 13, 1846, early in the Mexican-America War, U.S. naval forces under Commodore Robert F. Stockton sailed into Los Angeles and raised the American flag without opposition. A small occupying force of 50 Marines, under Captain Archibald H. Gillespie, built a rudimentary barricade on what was then known as Fort Hill overlooking the small town (Los Angeles).
The harsh martial law of Captain Gillespie soon ignited a popular uprising among Californios and Mexicans led by General José Mariá Flores beginning on September 22, 1846. Known as the Siege of Los Angeles, Californios assembled a force to retake Los Angeles. Gillespie’s 50 marines were able to resist an initial attack on the government house in town and regrouped on Fort Hill, where they strengthened the fortification with sandbags.

As time passed, the Californio forces opposing the U.S. takeover grew to just over 60 men, with several Californio citizens voicing opposition. General Flores offered an ultimatum: leave within 24 hours or face attack.

Today, a mere three blocks away from a monument erected to honor those AMERICANS who fought to “Occupy Los Angeles”, Americans who have been Occupying LA on the City Hall Lawn, AMERICANS who have been fighting for what they believe in were offered an ultimatum by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; leave by midnight Sunday or face a forceful eviction. The similarities here are unmistakable.

While I’ve never been one to march, strike, protest or otherwise, I do believe that these people have a right to their peaceful demonstration and should not be removed. I don’t know why the Mayor decided to evict these people and I’m sure given his track record for corruption there is something in it for him, I won’t speculate and won’t allow others to speculate until there is hard evidence of such. I will however there Sunday night to document the forceful eviction of an otherwise peaceful demonstration with a handful of friends armed with our cameras.

This eviction goes against everything our nation was built on and everything Americans have stood for dating back to the founding fathers and exemplified by the 50 Marines who once, so long ago, held their ground against a hostile force. The Occupy LA movement on the City Hall Lawn exemplifies that very fire raging inside every American starting with the 56 men who on July 4th 1776 defiantly declared a nation’s independence.

The US Government has lost its noble way… Mayor Villaraigosa, you never had a noble way to begin with.

Yes, my city is that beautiful

Back in 2008 I suggested that Major League Baseball would benefit from an expanded playoff.  Recently I heard rumors which asked if adding more Wild Card teams would do the season justice.  This was not what I had in mind.

I believe one (1) more playoff series would be fantastic for ratings not to mention league revenue. In the World Cup, which we can all agree is a premier tournament, the final is decided in the last game of the tournament while on that same day a 3rd place match takes place.  Brilliant!

What I propose is one best of three (3) series between the losers of the League Championship Series.  I realize that this sounds like desperate move to see a little more Dodgers Baseball in both 2008 and 2009 but look at whos playing in the world series this year and tell me with a straight face that you actually care and I’ll call you a liar.

Lets take a look at the last 3 years.

In the 2008 ALCS, the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox in a thrilling 7 game series and in the NLCS the Philadelphia Phillies painfully beat my Los Angeles Dodgers in 5 games.  Does anybody outside of Philadelphia or Tampa Bay with a combined population of  less than 2 million really remember or care what happened in that World Series? Didn’t think so.  Now Imagine a best of three series between the Red Sox and Dodgers. Can you see it?  Can you see all the plot lines?  Torre vs the Red Sox again. Frank McCourt vs the team he couldnt buy which is also his hometown team.  Derek Lowe vs Terry Francona.  JD Drew vs Dodgers Fans. Jeff Kents last chance at a Championship and of course who could forget Manny vs the Red Sox?

Now thats drama!

In the 2009 NLCS once again, my Dodgers were painfully defeated by the Phillies in 5 games and in the more interesting of the two LCS, the ALCS pitted the Anaheim Angels and the NY Yankees.  Of course the Yankees won that series setting up an all East-Coast World Series.  This years anticipation was to see either the first ever freeway world series or to revive an all-time classic rivalry between the Dodgers and Yankees.  Well, what about an all West-Coast 3rd place series? I don’t need to get into how exciting a freeway series like this would have been for Los Angelinos and the Orange County.  Not that I consider Anaheim to be a Dodger rival at all.  I see them much like I do the Padres…. annoying little brothers that keep pestering you.  It would be a HUGE success for the Anaheim people especially since here in LA we only hang up Championship pennants and only retire hall of famers…. that is Hall of Famers that are wearing a Dodgers cap in their plaque.  Get what I’m saying?  Intriguing no?

In 2010 the proposed 3rd place series would have been a rematch of the 2009 World Series.  Do I really have to mention the benefits of that?

I guess what I’m saying is, in the last three years, two world series have been a total bore and the proposed 3rd place series would have made baseball, a little bit more exciting for everybody.

As the 2010 baseball season progresses and looms over my head like a Cambodian Mud Monkey ready to steal my soul once again, I look at my Dodgers and wonder ‘will this be the year?’  I took a careful look at our team and while the roster may have several solid, home-grown kids in the lineup such as Silver Slugger & Gold Glove outfielder Matt Kemp, Silver Slugger and MVP candidate Andre Ethier and former Silver Slugger & Gold Glove recipient Russell Martin, I can’t help but wonder what this team could possibly look like had we actually done a better job of drafting players in the past and theoretically kept them in the organization.  I went back to the 1994 draft which was a pretty good pick in Paul Konerko and then began the study the following year which shows some lack of foresight. Of course any good Dodgers fan knows that Paul Konerko was eventually traded to the Reds for Jeff Shaw which eventually gave all Dodgers fans indigestion in the 9^th inning.  Please note that this only reflects the Dodgers 1^st round draft picks in the respective years.

In 1995 with the 20^th overall pick the Dodgers drafted LHP David Yocum.  The following year Baseball America had him listed as the #7 top prospect in the Dodgers farm system.  He never made the major leagues.  In fact, I can’t find any record that he even played in the minor leagues.   That very same year a skinny Puerto Rican was drafted in the 2^nd round #49 overall by the name of Carlos Beltran.  Carlos didn’t make it to the show full-time until the 1999 campaign when the Royals made him their starting center fielder and leadoff man, meanwhile that year the Dodgers where signing an aging Devon White *shudder* to a 2 year deal worth $6.5 million to be our everyday centerfielder and leadoff man.  I’m in no way saying Carlos Beltran would still be a Dodgers but we would have never traded him in 2004 to Houston because we were actually having a good year then and we would have never had to suffer through Devon White, Tom Goodwin, Dave Roberts or Jose Cruz Jr. as our opening day centerfielders .

In 1996 with the 23^rd overall pick the Dodgers drafted 3B Damian Rolls. This kid had some promise.  The year after his draft Baseball America had him as the #6 top prospect in the Dodgers Farm system.  While he never played for the Dodgers he has played in parts of five major league seasons with Tampa Bay and got as high as AAA Columbus in the Yankees system, which means he was good enough to play for Tampa Bay.  That same year a skinny kid from Weir Mississippi by the name of Roy Oswalt was taken in the 23^rd round.  23^rd round! After winning a Gold Medal in the 2000 Olympics, which was of course managed by Dodger Legend Tommy Lasorda, he went on to a 14 win rookie season in 2001, a 19 win season in 2002 and a 20 win season in 2004.  In 2001 the Dodgers paid Andy Ashby $6 million to pitch in two games and get hurt.  Bet it would have been nice to have been able to call up Roy Oswalt! In 2002 the same Andy Ashby went 9- 13.  And finally in 2004, the combination of Hideo Nomo, Wilson Alvarez, Edwin Jackson and Brad Penny (late season acquisition) couldn’t muster up more wins than Oswalt did that year.  I bet it would have been nice having a 20 game pitcher in that October series against the Cardinals.

1997 was an interesting year. The Dodgers drafted 1B Glenn Davis 25^th overall while there were two pitchers who were drafted after him that would have greatly improved the Dodgers in the future; Tim Hudson and Randy Wolf.  I’m going to focus on the latter for these reasons.  1. Randy Wolf was drafted by the Dodgers in 1994 but didn’t sign. 2. He’s from LA and the Dodgers should scout better in their backyard 3. He eventually played for the Dodgers… twice!  4. He won 16 games in 2003.  Imagine had the Dodgers drafted Randy Wolf in 1997, we would have had a hometown favorite who could have pitched for us from 1999-2009.  I mentioned 2003 because that would have been Roy Oswalts down year where he only won 10 games.  Glenn Davis of course never made it passed AA and is now out of baseball.  Tim Hudson would have eventually left LA to play for his hometown Braves anyways.

In 1998 the Dodgers drafted Bubba Crosby.  Remember him?  No? Well, he played nine games for the Dodgers in 2003 and played three seasons with the Yankees in 2004-2006.  He hit a total of four career homeruns, all of them with the Yankees.  Shawn Green hit four in one game back in 2002! You know who else hits a ton of homeruns? Adam Dunn.  The same Adam Dunn who was drafted by the Reds in the 2^nd round that same year.  The Same Adam Dunn who hit 40 homeruns five consecutive years.  The same Adam Dunn who in 2004 hit a homerun in Ohio that didn’t stop travelling until it got to Kentucky off then Dodgers starter Jose Lima; may he rest in peace. Can you imagine that Outfield?  I’ll explain later.

Which leads me to the 1999 1^st round draft pick…. Nobody.  We gave up our 1^st round pick when we signed Kevin Brown to that ridiculous deal and later traded him to the Yankees for Jeff Weaver.

The 2000 draft is still making me pull my hair out.  Probably why I buzz cut these days, easier to avoid baldness and gray hairs from stressed induced by the Dodgers.  Ben Diggins was drafted 17^th overall.  Grady Sizemore drafted 75^th overall by the Expos!  Gahh! Ben Diggins was traded to Milwaukee in 2002 where he had an 0-4 record and was never heard from again.  On the other hand, Grady Sizemore became the Cleveland Indians full-time center fielder in 2005 where he has been an All-Star, gold glover, silver slugger and a 30-30 man.  Sound familiar? I swear I’ll get to it in the end.

Almost done.  Swear.

In 2001, we also had to forfeit our first round draft pick because of Andy Ashby this time.  You all know how I feel about Andy Ashby so I won’t go into it any further.

Now, from 2002 and beyond I won’t really say much other than who we’ve drafted mainly because they’re on the current roster and are making strong contributions to the ball club.

2002: James Loney
2003: Chad Billingsley
2004: Scot Elbert and Blake DeWitt
2005: No pick (Derek Lowe)
2006: Clayton Kershaw

Interestingly enough, in 2003, Andre Ethier was drafted by Oakland after Chad Billingsley and in 2006 2-time Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum was drafted after Clayton Kershaw.

Okay… Now just think that had the Dodgers drafted the way I just detailed could have been possible, they would have had Carlos Beltran patrolling centerfield from 1999-2004 eliminating the need for Devon White, Tom Goodwin, Dave Roberts and even Juan Encarnation.  The Dodgers would have been able to afford to let him go after that year because they had a stud centerfielder in the minors by the name of Grady Sizemore who would still be in center today.  Can you imagine replacing a 30-30 centerfielder with another 30-30 centerfielder? So what about Matt Kemp? He would be playing left field because there would have been no need to trade for Manny in the first place.  Randy Wolf would have joined the rotation in 1999 with Roy Oswalt joining in 2001 Adam Dunn joins the club in 2002 replacing an aging Eric Karros at 1B eliminating the need to sign the Crime Dog Fred Mcgriff and you’re looking at a 2004 Dodgers team  with an outfield of Milton Bradley, Carlos Beltran and Shawn Green, and an infield of Beltre, Izturis, Cora and Dunn, a rotation with Oswalt, Wolf, Lima, Weaver and Ishii.  This team could easily have won 100 games which is 7 more than they already won, payroll would have been relatively small because of the young players on the team and we quite possibly win a world series that year instead of still waiting for one today and I would have never had had to deal with Andy Ashby.

Here are a few things this weekend that can and should keep you busy and entertained.

First off is the City of Glendale’s Summer Night in the Plaza Friday July 31st from 6-9pm.  Not exactly LA but LA County nonetheless.  This 6th Annual festive gathering features an impressive food and dessert “taster” from many of Glendale’s best restaurants and bakeries, live entertainment and an eclectic array of silent auction items.  I attend this event every year and have an absolute blast.

Saturday morning, Mayor Villaraigosa’s Million Tree Initiative will be handing out free 15 gallon citrus trees at Home Depot in West Hills to LA City residents beginning at 9am.  Only 100 trees will be available so get there on time.

Also Saturday is the Historic Filipinotown Festival and 5k Run on Temple and Alvarado.  Cool event with a lot of local LA history and resources.  Check it out!

Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon the Shakespeare International Renaissance Festival LA (SIRFLA) in conjunction with the US Veterans Artists Alliance (USVAA) and the Veterans Center for the Performing Arts are producing Midsummer Nights Dream at the West LA Civic Center Bandshell.  The atmosphere is excellent for this play which stars several US Veterans in key roles.  I must say that I have seen this play several times already and highly recommend this production.  LA Weekly even gave it a “GO”.   Check it out!  Saturdays at 6pm and Sundays at 4:30pm after the WLA Farmers Market.

Enjoy.

Countless times I have met somebody in Los Angeles and the same question is asked of me.  “Where are you from originally?”  These people are always shocked to hear that I’m an LA native.  Not only am I an LA native but rather one who has lived his entire life in Hollywood.  So many people have moved to Los Angeles for various reasons, be it school, work, the sun or show business that these folks surround themselves with other transplants.

Today for example I had a meeting with a young college student who wanted to interview me for her college paper and the first thing she said was “Thank you for being on time.”  She being an LA native as well, was on time.  I don’t like to be late.  Neither does she.  We concluded that Los Angelenos are not the cause of that stereotype but rather the people from Florida, Missouri and New Jersey, the people from Boca Raton, Lee Summit and Newark, the people from The Windy City, Big Apple and The Big Easy who are always late and give us Angelenos a bad reputation.

This blog will focus on a great many things.  The squashing of Angeleno Stereotypes, event announcements, tales from my world, locals only secrets may be divulged, non touristy hang outs will be, local politics, travels, family and friends to name a few. I’m sure this blog will evolve and morph as time goes by as I’m sure my readership will too.

I hope you will all enjoy reading as much as I will enjoy writing.

My name is Alfredo A. Hernandez and I am an LA Native.

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