Remembering Scott Delgadillo: A Friend, A Hero, An Inspiration

Remembering Scotty – November 12, 2011

Thank you, Steve, Carmen, and friends. I always like to say that I’m blessed to be at an event but tonight it’s especially true. I am blessed. I am honored. I am touched.

It was ten years ago that we lost Scotty Delgadillo. Ten years goes by in the blink of an eye, doesn’t it? It’s been ten short, or long, years. But his impact will last a lifetime.

Tonight I'd like to tell you my story of knowing Scott.

Let me tell you how I met Scott and his family. In the late summer of 2000, I was not too far removed from my years at the University of Notre Dame, and I was working at the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.  My phone rings and it’s the San Diego Make-A-Wish Foundation. They tell me that they grant wishes to kids battling illnesses and a young man named Scott Delgadillo had a special wish: to visit Notre Dame.

I had no clue how to put this together but I had a good friend that worked on Notre Dame’s campus, Jen Laiber, so I called her. Turns out Jen actually handled visits like those so she said, Sure, we can take care of him. I breathed a sigh of relief because, again, I had NO CLUE how to help grant this type of wish, or why out of alllll the alumni in San Diego, they called me. But God knew.

So I called back Make-A-Wish and they were ecstatic. And in mid-September 2000, with Jen Laiber’s help, they put Scotty on a plane to South Bend, Indiana.

Now, the weekend of his trip, Notre Dame’s football team, the Fighting Irish, were hosting the Purdue Boilermakers. The morning of the game, Scott’s mom, Carmen calls me, and says, “Alex, you’ll never believe this. We got here yesterday and toured the campus, and met the football team, and the head coach, Bob Davie, was so impressed by Scott, he asked him to speak.”

“To the team?” I asked.

“No,” said Carmen, “to the STUDENT BODY at the Pep Rally.”

I was stunned. There are 15,000 people at these rallies!  And Scotty brought down the house.

But Carmen had one more story. Apparently there was an Irish player from San Diego who met Scotty and promised him that, in his honor, he’d return an interception for a touchdown. That player was Shane Walton.

Midway through the game he broke on a pass, picked it off, and TOOK IT TO THE HOUSE. Notre Stadium went bananas!  I went bananas! Interception for a touchdown. The quarterback who threw it: Drew Brees.

I didn’t know Scott had such pull to where he could be an instant Notre Dame football legend like that. But God knew.

A few weeks later I finally had the opportunity to meet him. Unfortunately, not long after he returned to San Diego, he got sicker and had to return to Children’s Hospital. So I invited my buddy Adriana Holguin, who was also a Notre Dame graduate, to go with me.

On a crisp, fresh fall night, much like tonight, we walked into that hospital room and were so amazed. The Delgadillos – Carmen and Henry and Eric – were so welcoming. Scotty was too but that’s not what stood out to me. What stood out, first of all, was on his walls were letters and posters from Notre Dame students and alumni who had heard him speak at the September pep rally. Here he had given a completely unrehearsed speech and touched, LITERALLY, thousands of lives.

Second, there were pictures from girls everywhere! Lil’ Scotty was a pimp!

But what was interesting were the things he really DID NOT want to talk about. He didn’t wanna talk about his cancer or leukemia. He didn’t wanna talk about my prosthetics or that I obviously had some challenges. He wanted to talk football. He wanted to crack jokes. And because he was a pimp, he wanted to talk about girls.

That night was unforgettable and I quickly learned that THAT’S what Scotty was about. Did he want to recover from his illnesses? Sure. But he was more focused on visiting the rooms around him and making others happy. Lifting THEIR spirits. And telling people to always, always appreciate life.

A few months later, as you know, we lost Scotty.  <Long pause.>     It hurt. It still hurts.

But I’ve thought a lot about him in the ensuing years. And in 2008 when "Swinging for the Fences" was published, I dedicated a chapter to him because something he said stuck with me: Leave A Place Better Than How You Found It.

You see, Scotty knew there was a chance he may leave us early. But he didn’t whine and he didn’t pout. He was determined to raise awareness and get others to do good in this world. His friends continued that mission. His parents continued that mission with the Friends of Scott Foundation. DREW BREES even helps out now – amazing.

So I say to you tonight. As we remember Scotty, don’t be afraid to cry and definitely don’t be afraid to laugh. It is a night of remembrance. But I think about this every day as my employer, the San Diego Padres, strives to makes our city a better place.

Look for causes in which you can get involved! Look for lives you can touch. Look for how you can leave your community and school and church and relationships, better…than how you found it. 

Scott Delgadillo told the Notre Dame pep rally he’d return to campus one day to make an impact on it. I don’t think he knew he was making an impact right there and then!

But God knew.

And as sure as Scotty is watching us tonight…make him proud by making this world a better place. That is what Scotty wants.

God bless you; thank you.

Latinos in Baseball Speech - July 6, 2011

Here is a speech I delivered at Cal State San Bernardino yesterday to approximately 100 Latino retired baseball players and Latino baseball historians. There were some current, college-age players as well. The event was a reunion and reception for the "Latino Baseball History Project", an archive and book series founded at CSUSB:

Baseball in our Heritage

Thank you so much, Dr. Caballero and Santillan, and Cal State San Bernardino.  It is such a great blessing to be here.

In my career, I have the honor of working for the San Diego Padres. It is an honor because I am working for a Major League Baseball team, but also because I get to work with the Latino community. As Manager of Latino Affairs, I oversee the Padres’ Hispanic marketing and outreach efforts.

I get to share my love of the game with others. And I do love this game. It is beautiful, it is acrobatic, it is passionate, and it is what shaped my life as an American immigrant.

You see, I was born in Medellin, Colombia in South America. I was part of a generation that was impacted by the morning-sickness medicine called Thylidamide, which was found to cause birth defects. As a result, I was born missing both of my arms and my right leg.

When I was four I moved to the United States so I could receive the proper medical care, including two prosthetic arms and a prosthetic leg. I moved to San Diego, with relatives who had already moved there, and it was a strange, new world. In my first book, “Swinging for the Fences”, I describe how everything was new: the language, the bigger houses, the constant swirl of activity.

I felt like I was on another planet and I felt lost. So I did what every kid naturally does - in my new home I turned on the TV. The first thing I saw was this game being played, men in their majestic white uniforms, playing on lush green grass, whacking this white ball around. I was captivated. Then the next day, it was on TV again. And then the next day. And then the day after THAT. I thought, this is the best NOVELA around.

I started to recognize certain words, like Ball, Bat, Stadium, and Ozzie Smith. Watching baseball on TV is what taught me English.

But it gave me more than a new language. It gave me a purpose. I fell in love with the sport and saw that, although I couldn’t play it, I could still work in it and be a part of it. It gave me a purpose and a passion.

Years later, after completing my undergraduate work at Notre Dame, I took a job in PR and then a second part-time job as an usher for the San Diego Padres.  This allowed me to apply for a full-time job within the organization, which I didn’t get. But I Kept Swingin’.   I applied again and again, and kept getting turned down. But I Kept Swingin’ and Swingin’.   Until finally, on my fourth attempt, I got hired into the front office.

I mention all this because it parallels the Latino experience in baseball. Ours is a history of struggle, and determination, but ultimately success in the game we love. Our community has been downtrodden, and often rejected, yet we persevere. It’s in our blood. It’s in our DNA. From the farm workers in the Central Valley, to the factory workers in Chicago, to hard-working first-generation college students in Southern California. We struggle and we overcome. And baseball is a constant part of our history.

That is why I fell in love with the exhibit here. When I first read “Mexican-American Baseball in Los Angeles” I was amazed. Not surprised, but amazed. I was amazed that teams have been formed in barrios, and in times of war, and as a means of keeping communities together. But I was not surprised at our level of passion, and perseverance, and pride. It’s in our blood. It’s in our DNA.

It is not important to keep this history alive – it is crucial. Today’s youth need to know about the Chorizeros, and Naranjeros, and Chavez Ravine, and Fernandomania.  Those are the predecessors to A-Rod and Adrian; Pujols and Panda; Reyes and Ramirez.    And the more cities we do this in, Inland Empire and San Diego and Tijuana and beyond, the histories will come alive.

I urge ALL of you to do two things: always keep supporting projects like these; keep the history alive; and the legacy flowing. And use baseball as your inspiration, your catalyst, your fire. Embrace adversity. Embrace struggle. Dream large.  Overcome. And always, always Keep Swinging!