As DFW is finding out, Dodgers fans are just like Cowboys fans — they’re everywhere
Being a Los Angeles Dodgers fan is like being a Dallas Cowboys fan. At least that’s how Ashley Latimer-White explained it while attending Game 2 of the World Series at Globe Life Field on Wednesday night.
“It is a lifestyle,” Latimer-White said. “The Cowboys to Texas is the Dodgers to LA. You walk around anywhere in LA and you can’t walk without seeing this hat on.”
Latimer-White, an Angelino native now living in Washington, D.C., was wearing one of those iconic hats with the Dodgers’ trademark LA logo. And, yes, the majority of fans who have descended upon North Texas for the 2020 World Series are seemingly pro-Dodgers fans. They’ll continue to make their presence felt despite the Tampa Bay Rays being the “home” team for Games 3, 4 and 5 this weekend.
The Star-Telegram discovered Dodgers fans traveled in from all parts of the country, from LA to Arizona to Washington, D.C., for this year’s World Series. And some, it stands to reason, are probably living among us.
Californians have been flooding into Texas by the tens of thousands in recent years.
According to a 2020 Texas Relocation Report by Texas Realtors, 86,164 people moved from California to Texas in 2018 alone. That’s by far the largest shift into Texas from one state, with Florida running a distant second with 37,262 arrivals.
And perhaps it’s for that reason that Dodger Nation has been well-represented since fans have been allowed to attend baseball games dating back to the previous round. But things seemed to hit a new level this week when Globe Life Field sold out of Dodgers’ World Series gear before Game 1.
Hey, maybe the Dodgers win their first World Series since 1988 after losing two of the previous three. (Yes, the Houston Astros remain the 2017 champions despite the sign-stealing scandal from that season.)
“I was born in 1989. The last time we won the World Series was 1988,” said Latimer-White, who has been going to Dodgers games with her father since she was 2. “So I’ve literally been waiting my entire life for the Dodgers to win a World Series.”
In surveying a number of fans before Wednesday’s Game 2, the Dodgers fandom is something most were born into and then passed down from generation to generation.
Dre Robles, a 21-year-old from Arizona who made the trek to DFW with his family and friends, said his family became diehard Dodgers fans during the “Fernandomania” years back in the early 1980s with former Cy Young winner Fernando Valenzuela.
“It’s just a blessing to be out here, watching good baseball,” Robles said.
Mike McKinish, a 40-year-old from Oklahoma City, is passing on his Dodgers fandom to his son Montgomery. McKinish became a fan during his college years at Long Beach State.
“It is a unique experience to come spend our father-son time watching baseball,” McKinish said. “He loves baseball. He plays baseball. He’s been playing for years now. It’s just a neat experience. The Dodgers have been there three of the last four years, so hopefully this is their year.”
As much as the stadium felt Dodgers-heavy during the LA’s Game 1 victory, there were a handful of Tampa Bay fans in attendance. They became vocal during Game 2 when the Rays were playing well, particularly when the team scored two runs in the fourth inning and two more in the fifth inning on a Brandon Lowe home run en route to a 6-4 victory.
Tom Walker, who has been a Rays season ticket holder since they were formed in 1998, disputed the notion that Globe Life Field essentially feels like Dodger Stadium.
“I see a lot of Tampa Bay shirts,” Walker said. “There’s more Dodgers shirts ... We’re all jumping on planes or doing a real long drive, but we showed up. I love our chances. I’m sure all the experts don’t, but I like the chances. I am in the stadium for the World Series, watching my boys play. It’s awesome.”
The Dodgers-Fort Worth connections
Seeing Dodgers fans infiltrate the DFW area shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Dodgers organization has a number of ties to DFW, from players such as Clayton Kershaw (Highland Park), Max Muncy (Keller) and Dustin May (Justin) to part owner Bobby Patton, a lifelong Fort Worth resident.
TCU has even seen a spike in enrollment from Southern California-based students over the last decade, which coincides with when its football program won the Rose Bowl in the 2010 season.
Back in the day, the Fort Worth Cats were a minor-league affiliate of the then-Brooklyn Dodgers from 1946-56. Among the notable players who played for the Cats in those days included future Hall of Fame managers Dick Williams and Sparky Anderson. Maury Wills, a three-time World Series champion with the Dodgers in 1959, 1963 and 1965, also played for the Cats.
Bleed Dodger blue
Several of the Dodgers faithful on hand for the World Series aren’t necessarily longtime Texas residents, or even originally American.
James Igbinovia, 37, was born in Nigeria but his family moved to San Francisco when he was a young child. The first hat Igbinovia ever owned was a Dodgers cap and, despite being an Arizona resident now, he’s been a loyal fan ever since. “Thirty-seven years later, I’m still a Dodgers fan.”
Chad Waldron, a 34-year-old longtime Dodger fan who now calls the Metroplex home, grew up rooting for LA while living in Las Vegas. The Dodgers were the closest “good baseball team” for Waldron to cheer for, and he’s embraced a fan base that stretches across the world.
“You can find them anywhere,” Waldron said. “You see people in Australia watching them. There’s tons of people here locally. It’s been real cool.”
