Three 15’s from LA that come to mind are Vince Ferragamo, the Rams QB who lead them to a Super Bowl, Ron Artest (or should I say Metta World Peace?) of the Lakers, and Davey Lopes of the Dodgers. Tim Tebow?? Sorry, he’s not my choice. Of the three I mentioned, when I think of 15, I think of Mr. Davey Lopes. I actually got his autograph once on a baseball. The problem was, I never put the ball in an air tight container, and his autograph in pen slowly faded away until it was gone completely! After that, I threw the ball away. I could have said it was an autographed baseball, but who would have believed me?
Lopes was drafted by the Giants in 1967 but did not sign with them. The Dodgers took him in the draft the very next year and he signed. Lopes had the rare combination of speed and power. He was known as a base stealer and he finished with 557, but he also hit 155 HR’s in his career. His first one came on May 13, 1973. (Glenn’s birthday!) The Dodgers infield of Lopes, Garvey, Russell, and Cey were together for 8 ½ years, which is still the MLB record an infield staying together. He was a member of the Dodgers 1981 World Championship team. After coaching for many different ball clubs, Lopes has returned to the Dodgers as their first base coach and is wearing #15 again. Ah…the cycle of life.
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