Dustin Pedroia hasn't exactly said glowing things about his hometown of Woodland, California. It may or may not be justified, after the backlash following his brother's arrest for child molestation. Dustin had nothing to do with it, but obviously the familial ties make it a difficult situation for everyone.
In an interview with Boston Magazine, Pedroia ripped the entire town, and made some pretty harsh comments about it:
"It's a dump. You can quote me on that. I don't give a s***. Everyone wants to get out of there. You don't want to stay in Woodland. What do you want to stay in Woodland for? The place sucks. The newspaper there, I don't really get along with. I come from your town. You should embrace me. I play for the Boston Red Sox. You haven't had a lot of major-leaguers come out of your city."
Now, a man has actually been arrested for making threats against the family. A local politician wrote in his blog that it has finally gone way too far, and the town needs to start behaving like a family, instead of a psychotic jilted lover. Matt Rexroad is the Yolo County Supervisor, and he doesn't approve of all of the Pedroia hate. From his blog:
"Let's stop acting like idiots and end this crazy chapter in Woodland history. I ask everyone to stop bad mouthing Dustin Pedroia and any member of his family. Take down the Facebook pages, take down the banners, and just focus on doing something positive for the community.
Woodland needs to start acting more like the family we are supposed to be. Right now the crazy uncle is the only one getting the attention."
Woodland needs to start acting more like the family we are supposed to be. Right now the crazy uncle is the only one getting the attention."
While it's a bit humorous, it's still sad that the town of Woodland and a player like Pedroia can't get this worked out. It seems like everyone wants to move up in the world and get out of their current situation. It happens in big cities, resort towns, and small towns in northern California.
Let's hope Dustin and Woodland can get things patched up at some point. Or, at the very least, come up with some more great signs.
Dissed Hometown Fights Back Against Pedroia [The Sporting Blog]
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