My Romo: How A Bearded Closer Became My Favorite Player

Sergio Romo will always be one of my favorite baseball players. For one, he was the closer for my family’s favorite team — the San Francisco Giants. And, like me, he is Mexican-American. But it only took one moment to cement him at the “Best Ever” status that he has in my heart.

Romo was one of the Giants’ closers during the team’s three World Series championships of the early 2010s. My family and I loved watching Romo close out Giants games. The Giants were winning back then, and to see someone that I identified with on my hometown team shutting down everyone was exciting. We would share his posts on social media and go to Giants FanFest for a chance to talk to him.

Romo was also one of “the Beards” on those Giants’ teams, and he blew everyone away in the 2012 World Series, when he recorded three saves with three perfect innings, and struck out mighty Miguel Cabrera for the last out to clinch the Series. Like he told La Vida Baseball in spring training, it was his Casey at the Bat moment.

Using his voice

Even with all that, nothing could surpass what he would do after that performance. While many people welcome immigrants with open arms, there are others in this country who want nothing more than to build walls on our borders to keep them out, and that sentiment has only gotten worse in the last decade. Romo took advantage of the platform he had earned on the Series stage to make a statement about the issue. During the 2012 World Series celebration parade in San Francisco, Romo stepped out fearlessly in a t-shirt that said, “I just look illegal.”

There was no hiding. It was there for all to see.

The scene brought tears to my eyes then, and still chokes me up now. At a time when undocumented immigrants were facing deportation and more people were jumping on border wall talk, Romo gave a voice to the voiceless — and it was a loud one.

I’ve worked in Latino media for almost eight years, and I remember Latino media outlets going crazy. Not only was a Mexican-American supporting undocumented immigrants, a World Series champion was supporting undocumented immigrants. That shirt should be in the ¡Viva Baseball! exhibit in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown for all to remember.

After that moment, Romo was my hero.

I’ll never forget my sisters and I almost falling over when we heard the news that Sergio was going to our archrival, the Los Angeles Dodgers. We were so torn, and we still feel the burn to this day. We love Sergio, but how could we cheer for him playing for the Dodgers?

When I got the job as social media producer at La Vida Baseball, I couldn’t stop talking about Sergio and all the content I wanted to produce around him. I remember telling my coworkers when we went to spring training earlier this year that I would sleep outside Camelback Ranch-Glendale — the Dodgers’ and White Sox’s spring training facility in Arizona — in hopes of getting an interview with him.

The last day of spring training arrived, and I was nervous. I finally had an interview with Sergio. There was so much that I wanted to ask him, I didn’t even need to prepare interview questions.

I wanted to know how it felt striking out Miggy to win the 2012 World Series for the Giants. What was he thinking when he decided to wear the “I Just Look Illegal” t-shirt? How did it feel to be wearing a Dodgers uniform after winning three World Series with the Giants? Which tacos were better, L.A.’s or San Fran’s? Did he prefer Dodger dogs or garlic fries? And who has the best fans, the Dodgers or the Giants?

As nervous as I was, I was able to ask him everything I wanted to. I’ll never forget that, when I asked him about the shirt and told him how proud he made Latinos that day, I choked up and thanked him for giving a voice to the voiceless and making our Mexican-American community proud.

Check out a few of my interviews with him below, such as when I asked him about playing for Team Mexico for the World Baseball Classic and a rivalry questions about LA and SF.

After the interviews, he stayed for a little bit and talked with me about how he felt playing for the Dodgers after so much success with the Giants and what it meant to his family. Sergio grew up a Dodgers fan and his career had come full circle. I am proud to say that I am still a fan of Romo, whatever uniform he pulls on.

When I look back on this year, I couldn’t have imagined meeting Sergio, interviewing him —and most importantly — thanking him for what he did that day in 2012 at the World Series parade. I told him that even though he was in Dodgers blue, I would always be a fan. I got a chance to see Sergio again this season in Chicago after he was traded to the Rays, and I still cheered for him as if he was still in a Giants jersey. Because of that moment on a World Series float, I will always be his fan.

Featured Image: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images Sport

Inset Images: Jessica Stone / La Vida Baseball