ANAHEIM – This might have been the only time when Rod Carew went unrecognized at Angel Stadium as the Rod Carew, Hall of Famer and legendary Angel.
On Saturday, in the Diamond Club full of 100 Anaheim second- and third-graders, Carew quietly and inconspicuously sat a roundtable with 10 of them and played a phonics boardgame.
Beside him was hot-pink-sweatered, Angels-capped Adriana Salgado, 8, who rolled the dice and drew a card bearing the word, “straw.”
As she sounded out the word, Carew, 69, the best reader at the table, nodded with affirmation.
Perhaps one day she’ll read about that man with the round, wire-framed glasses and red pullover and realize she shared a “straw” with a 1967 AL rookie of the year, 1977 AL MVP and an 18-time All-Star.